by Sam Ferguson
“As I said,” Jaleal started. “I am here to help.”
“How did you know I would be in trouble?” Erik asked. Marlin came in close as well, obviously eager to hear the story.
Jaleal blushed. “Well, after I was expelled from the temple, I was looking for a way to get back in.” He pointed to Lepkin. “I was trying to wake him up.”
“Sorry about that,” Marlin said.
“Don’t be,” Jaleal said quickly. “If you hadn’t expelled me, I never would have found this tunnel.” Jaleal gestured to the opening where dust was still rolling out from the collapsed chamber. “The opening wasn’t as obvious as it is now. It was overgrown and hard to see, but we gnomes can talk with the plants, so I was able to find it easily enough. I went in, hoping to find a secret way back up to Lepkin. Instead I stumbled on the dragon’s lair.”
“But how did you know it was Tu’luh?” Marlin asked. “The dragon who was first there was a golden dragon named Hiasyntar’Kulai.”
Jaleal held a finger up in the air. “I heard two voices,” he said. “One was the dragon’s, and the other was a man’s. So I went in to investigate. When I did, I saw the apparition of a man dressed in black robes. I could tell it was magic, and not really an audience in any physical sense, so I crept in closer to see what I could see.” Jaleal’s smile faded then and he brandished his spear. “It was the same man I saw as a young child,” he said. “He torched my villages and murdered my grandfather.”
“Who was it?” Erik asked.
“It is a powerful necromancer. He goes by the name of Gilifan, and has unnaturally prolonged his life with the use of the darkest magic.” Jaleal propped his spear on his foot and wrinkled his nose. “Once I saw who it was, I knew the dragon had to be an imposter. So I came to Lepkin as soon as I could.”
“Then, after he woke me, he told me what he just told you and he rushed out to get the dwarves while I went and told Marlin,” Lepkin added.
“And I went to fetch Lady Dimwater,” Marlin added.
Jaleal nodded. “Then we came for you as soon as we could,” Jaleal told Erik. The gnome then twirled his toe, digging it into the dirt and looked up to Marlin. “I should apologize for the two healers and the guards,” he said.
“Perhaps I should have listened to you,” Marlin replied.
“Perhaps?” Jaleal retorted sarcastically before he quickly covered his mouth and blushed a bit behind his silver beard.
Faengoril came up and slapped the gnome on the back. “I really like this guy,” he said with a big grin.
CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR
Gilifan surveyed his room once more. All of the artifacts he no longer needed were piled in the room, each stored in a wooden box and sealed shut. He weaved a spell over the items to prevent them from being tampered with. Then he set a cohort of ten soldiers in front of the door and gave them the order to kill any who approached until he returned.
Next he sent a rider to Spiekery with a message for the village people there that they could come to the keep if there were any problems. What he didn’t tell the villagers was that the rest of his mindless army would be waiting in the keep’s courtyard with orders to kill everyone that showed up. He was meticulous like that. No reason to allow loose ends to dangle freely in the wind.
A dead mouth tells no secrets, that was his philosophy. Besides, he could always bring them back anyway.
At that moment he remembered he didn’t have the amulet anymore. He exhaled angrily and silently berated himself for letting a kobold get the better of him. Then he shook the thought away and focused on the task at hand.
He finished the final preparations. He packed the lockbox with the treasure and sent it to the ship at the dock with his two best warriors. He also sent a coin purse with them to pay the ship’s captain the prearranged fare for his voyage south. Then he went to the dining hall for his last meal in the keep before heading out to the ship and watching the men load the master’s cargo.
As Gilifan stood on the ship, watching the men load the large crate onto the deck he couldn’t help but chew his lower lip nervously. They pushed the crate up the gangplank and nearly slammed it into the deck railing. “Be careful with that,” he warned. “The master will not be pleased if anything should happen to it.”
The mindless servants nodded blankly and carefully slid the crate into place. Then they finished securing the pulley ropes around the crate. A series of short whistles sounded and then a group of men pulled on several different ropes, all attached to pulleys that hung from above to hoist the crate up and then lower it into the cargo hold below through an opening in the deck.
A heavy set man with dark skin came out from the captain’s cabin and approached Gilifan. “Will we be taking the men as well?” the captain asked.
Gilifan shook his head. “No,” he replied. “Except for the two down below, I will go alone this time.”
The captain rubbed the back of his neck and looked up from the dock to the long road winding up a green hill to the back of the great keep that had once belonged to Lord Hischurn. “Seems a pity to leave such a great home.”
The necromancer offered a polite smile and then walked over as the men closed the grate over the hold where the crate had been loaded. After they locked the grate in place he sent the men back to the keep. “Maintain order until I return,” he told them.
“Obedient lot,” the captain commented. “Where did you find them?”
“Why do you ask?” Gilifan questioned.
The captain shrugged and looked around his deck at his crew. “I wouldn’t mind having men like that in my employ,” he said.
Gilifan sniggered to himself and then went below deck. He had arranged for a cot to be set up in the hold, next to the crate, and had purchased the use of the entire cargo hold as his personal quarters for the duration of the trip south. When he entered the hold, he found his two best men standing guard.
The necromancer gestured for the men to turn away from the crate. They did so and he went up to the wooden box and slid a hand over the front. The crate was as tall as his chest, and each side was four feet long. He slid a key into the lock and unhooked the latch. The necromancer gently pushed the lid up on its hinges to peer inside and check the contents. With his left hand he brushed away some loose straw to reveal the top of a massive, golden egg with red spots.
“Master Tu’luh will be happy to have you home, young prince,” Gilifan said to the dragon egg.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
I like to call myself a well-traveled story teller of Irish and Cherokee heritage. I live near a Stone Bridge on Eagle Mountain, however, I count seven U.S. states as home. I have spent several years abroad; first as a missionary in the Baltic States and currently as a Diplomat in the U.S. Foreign Service. When I'm not wrestling with my sons or hefting iron in the gym I can be found at home relaxing with my wife or setting pen to paper, bringing stories to life. (Or playing video games much longer than a responsible adult should...)
Table of Contents
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTYONE
CHAPTER TWENTY TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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