The soldier rolled his eyes. "Go home, boy. Your dog knows the way and will come find you. You can't be up here wandering around. It's not safe."
"I'll be on my way, sir. I just want to find my dog. I think he went over there."
"Look son, I told you I can't have you up here. Go follow your footprints back in the direction you came from and find where you and your dog—wait a minute, where are your footprints?"
Song began to panic. "Right here. See?"
"I see a few here on the road. How did you get here? Have you been standing here since before the snow started? What is that there on your hand? Are you wearing armor?"
Now Song was in a full on panic. He had lost himself in the magical armor that Rommus wore, and allowed himself to be seen. He was caught, and he could not come up with answers fast enough to confuse or placate the mounted soldier before him. The horseman was slowly determining that he was a threat, and Song heard the faint ring of a sword being pulled.
Song blurted out whatever answers and excuses came to his mind. "This here? This is a gauntlet. I use it for hunting. I use a bow and arrow and it kind of protects my arm from the string. My dog and I come up here for rabbits. I don't want any trouble, sir. I'll just go."
"You'll stand right there. What is your name?"
"Erratus."
"And where is your bow, Erratus?"
"The wood snapped when I shot at a rabbit. It can't be fixed so I threw it in the woods."
"And I suppose you threw away your quiver and all the arrows too?"
Song had no idea what to say. His lie was only getting worse and worse. There was no way to trick the soldier into believing his pathetic excuse, and he knew he could not outrun a horse. Instead of answering, he just stood and stared at the man. It was all he could do.
——————
Rommus looked down at the blank parchment in his hands. He nodded and pointed from time to time, trying to make his gestures as natural as possible. Soldiers joined in on the lie, offering nods or other gestures of their own. Other soldiers buzzed about as if bringing reports or moving supplies.
"Lord Rommus, I found someone."
The sound of a real voice bringing real news was a surprise. For hours the soldiers had performed a play of sorts, trying to get the attention of any enemy scouts in the area. None had shown up yet, so the play went on, the same scene over and over. Until the enemy spotted them, they would remain there on that hill.
"What do you mean?" Rommus asked as he stared at his parchment.
"I found him while riding on patrol. He looked awfully suspicious to me standing there right in the middle of the path. He told me he was out bow hunting, but he has no bow and no arrows. He says he lost his hunting dog and he was out looking for it. When I found him he was staring over here at you."
Rommus didn't even look up from the blank paper. "Vindyri? Bhoor?"
"Medoran. He says his name is Erratus. He wears a single gauntlet."
Rommus jerked his head toward the man and his prisoner. "Song?"
The soldier had no idea what he meant. "Song? No one is singing, Lord Rommus."
Rommus ignored the soldier and addressed Song directly. "What are you doing up here? Where have you been? We have been looking for you."
"Me? Why would you be looking for me?"
"I've got some things I need to tell you—important things. But they will have to wait for now. Have you lost Daphne? I can have a few soldiers help you look for her, but only for the next hour or so. I need them back here when the next patrol passes."
"No. I didn't lose Daphne. She's safe at home. I was lying about losing my dog."
"Lying? Why would you lie about that? What are you doing up here?"
Song fidgeted a bit. "I think I should talk to you alone, away from all these people."
"I don't have time for that, Song. I'm very busy here and I can't just walk away right now. Whatever you have to tell me, you can say in front of these men. They're on our side."
"Well, the truth is, I haven't been on your side, Rommus—not fully anyway. I mean, in my mind I was, but Uritus has been using me."
Rommus cocked his head and lowered the parchment. "Using you how? What have you done?"
"I haven't caused any problems. He has me follow you and Alana and Vohl from time to time. He just wants to know where you are at certain times. That's all, I swear."
"Why are you helping Uritus?"
"He has forced me to. He claims he will send me to the void if I don't. I have seen him use his magic and I think he can do it."
"He can do it. He sent me there. But as far as I know, he needs this sword to do it. I don't know if he has the power to do such a thing without it."
"He sent you there and you were able to come back?"
"I have been twice; neither time of my own volition. I was able to return because of luck and nothing else. What have you told Uritus?"
"Like I said, very little. I think he is looking for patterns in your position. When I noticed any patterns, I altered the facts a little to throw him off."
"And why is he using you? He knows I know who you are. Why is he not using one of his men?"
"He says I have a gift. He has determined that I possess a magical ability to avoid detection. I keep telling him that I am just quiet and careful, but he tells me I am wrong. He says I carry the spark of magic within me."
"If you can magically avoid detection, how did this soldier here find you?"
The soldier spoke up. "To be honest, Lord Rommus, the boy didn't even leave footprints in the snow. He was just suddenly there in the middle of my path."
"It's not as amazing as it sounds," Song said. "I just walked in places where I knew my footprints couldn't be seen. But when I saw your armor through the trees, I must have become too focused on it, and I wandered out into the path where the soldier saw me. I had been hiding in the trees before that."
Rommus nodded. "Yeah we are trying to draw attention to this hill. We want the enemy to see us here."
The soldier cleared his throat and spoke again. "Lord Rommus, is it wise to tell the boy what we are doing here? He admits he is working with Uritus."
Rommus shook his head to allay the man's fears. "No, trust me, he's one of us. He may not be fully aware of it yet, but he's one of us. Come on Song; let's go over what you're going to report to Uritus.
Chapter 19
Song's jaw dropped. What he saw completely stunned him; permanently altering his beliefs and ideas about reality in a single moment. It was a terrifying sight, and at first he thought that he surely must have been dreaming. But seeing such a sight would instantly wake him if he was indeed asleep. Try as he might, he could not wake up from the vision.
He had woven his way through the parts of the underground labyrinth beneath Brinn where he was allowed to go. He usually met with Uritus in the room directly beneath the Temple of Inshae, but when he did not find Uritus there, he often would look for him in various other rooms. This room was a room with several desks where books from the undergound library next door could be studied privately.
In the back of the room, Uritus was on his knees facing the back wall. In front of Uritus was the most terrifying thing Song had ever seen. It was far more chilling than even those horrid black beasts he saw with Daphne that day on his way back to Brinn. It was a being; a great, terrible being floating above the floor. It was larger than a man, and cloaked in all black. Its tattered robes were flowing on a gentle wind that Song could not feel at all.
But the worst part was the face. The frightening empty sockets of a skull as black as midnight stared down at Uritus. The missing eyes did not reduce the visage to a look of being dead and soulless, but rather intensified its presence somehow. This being did not have the face of the dead—the dead had the face of this being.
The skull had no mouth, which magnified the horror Song felt deep in his soul. Where a jaw and teeth should have been, was a hard bone plate, offering only the slightest hint
of vertical ridges. The whole head moved slightly; as if it were speaking, however no sound came from it at all. In fact, the entire room seemed to be sapped of all sound entirely. Somehow it was even more silent than silence could ever be.
Then the ghastly face looked up at him. There was no real face to show any sort of expression, but from its movements it appeared to be shocked to see him there in the doorway. Soon after the empty sockets looked upon him, the entire being vanished, leaving nothing but fear and dread behind.
Uritus remained on his knees but turned to face Song. "What trickery is this?"
"I don't understand. I didn't mean to interrupt you. I am just bringing you your reports."
"How did you do that? How is this possible?"
"How is what possible? I don't understand what you want me to say."
The Emperor stood. "How can a man walk into a room with a god and avoid his detection?"
"Then that really was Inshae? I really don't know. I didn't do anything but walk through the doorway. I swear it."
"Such a thing is not possible. It is one thing to be able to slip passed my senses or other unsuspecting people, but to fool a god is just not possible."
"Well I offer my apologies, Emperor. I hope I have not offended you or your god. If you would like me to leave, I will return later."
Uritus sat at a table and gestured for Song to sit. "No, tell me what you have learned."
"Rommus has his men stationed on a hill northeast of Taburdum. There are approximately 30 soldiers with him, and there are a few horsemen who make rounds around the small encampment. Rommus himself has been atop the hill in his red armor. He held a map in his hands, although I do not think there were any actual markings on the parchment."
"I see. So Rommus is setting up a diversion. He wants the enemy to see them surveying the land there so that he can strike them somewhere else. You say you saw Rommus yourself, with your own eyes?"
"Yes, Emperor. He stood there for hours holding a blank map. He may still be there now. I began to walk back once the sun began to go down. I knew it would be too hard to navigate the woods in the darkness. The snowstorm hides the light of moon and star, and I could not risk carrying a torch and being seen."
"Yes, that makes sense. And the others?"
"Tannis is here in Brinn preparing for the next strike. I cannot say what his exact plans are, as Tannis does most of his planning in the Emperor's Hall where even I cannot slip passed those guards in those open hallways. But we can assume that he is working with Rommus to lure the Vindyri and Bhoors into a trap.
"The Vindyri Alana and the immortal have been together for some time. It seems that their mission is to come retrieve the book that you took from them. The Vindyri has convinced the immortal to come down here into this labyrinth and look for it. They have their own map, and unlike the one Rommus has, it does have markings on it."
"A map of what? This labyrinth?"
"Yes, Emperor. It is crudely drawn, and most certainly missing the majority of the crisscrossing halls, but the woman has a fairly large section of this area under Brinn mapped out. They know there is a way in through the floor of the Temple of Inshae, and I overheard her say that she and Rommus escaped up a narrow stairway when he was held prisoner here. That stairway should probably be bricked over or blocked off in some way. I don't think they know any other ways down here."
Uritus drummed his fingers on the table. "I don't know which stairway she means. There are several narrow stairways that lead back up to ground level. Do you know when they plan to enter the labyrinth?"
"Soon. Tonight or tomorrow. But I think it will depend on how much snowfall there is. If it gets much worse out there, I don't see them coming down here so soon. Perhaps a week, but that is only a guess; I did not hear that in their plans."
"And in their plans did they mention how they planned to find the book once they were down here?"
"Well, no. But I heard the Vindyri say several times that she knew exactly where you would keep it."
"And where does she think that place is?"
"I don't know, Emperor. I can only tell you what I have heard her say. She seems very confident that she knows where it is already."
Uritus turned up his chin. "That's impossible. It's somewhere she has most certainly never been. She can't know where it is."
"Well, given the circumstances, I advise that you not brick over any entrances, and when she comes down here, have men waiting. If you know where she hasn't been then obviously you know where she has been. Put your Mages in those places and intercept her."
Uritus frowned. "This is not how I planned for this to go. I let that infernal woman go free so that Rommus would lower his guard. She's supposed to be at his side, and you were supposed to keep track of them until I could get my hands on Rommus."
"I have done that, Emperor. I cannot help that she's not with Rommus or that she's coming for the book. Does it really matter? Can't you just capture her again and make Rommus come to you?"
Uritus sighed. "It makes my ultimate plan a lot more complicated. I have to pull men away from important work to watch for their entry. I am beginning to think I should have just strangled her when I had her."
"Well, she won't do you much good if she is dead. Rommus would be easier to confront if she remained alive."
Uritus leaned back in his chair and threaded his fingers together in thought. "No, she may serve me better alive. Perhaps fate sends me both the Vindyri and the immortal at the same time for a reason. The Dirujen can read the dialect in the book far better than any of us can. Perhaps he can be persuaded to translate it for us if we threaten his little blonde companion."
Chapter 20
"Should we even bother risking it anymore?" Vohl asked.
Alana ran her knife over the sharpening stone. "We don't have any other choice."
"But my Lady, you risk death doing this. You should at least let me go alone."
"No Vohl, he's going to expect us both to go. We have a plan and we need to stick to it. It's better for both of us if we go together. It's much safer."
"It is safer if we do not do this at all."
"We can't afford to let him keep that book, Vohl. He's done far too much damage with it and who knows what else he can do with it. Besides, from the way Uritus spoke about it, there's apparently something in the book about getting Rommus's powers back. I know Rommus doesn't really care about that, but I think we could use those powers in this war."
Vohl ran a finger over a dusty book shelf. "When I read through the book, there was something I found about reversing the effects of the stone of Etheotis, however since the stone was destroyed, that cannot happen now."
"And that was the only thing you found in the book about reversing the effects?"
"I could not read the entire text in the time I possessed the book. There could have been something else about it, but if there was, I did not see it. Even if that information is in the book, I do not think we should be going on this mission. It is too risky."
Alana put a boot up against the table edge as she sharpened. "What's this new attitude all about? I always thought of you as the fearless type; being immortal and all. Suddenly you're nervous about this mission? We've been through harder trials before."
"It is not my life I am worried about my Lady; it is yours. I do not want harm to come to you."
Alana laughed. "Vohl, I have been through a lot and none of it has killed me yet. You need to relax a little. We're the good guys, remember? We're supposed to win."
"My Lady, relaxing is a sure path to defeat. And there is no cosmic rule written that says that one side deserves victory over another. From their perspective, the Mages are the 'good guys'. Such perspectives must be eliminated from our assessments. Danger, however, must not be so recklessly disregarded. It is of utmost importance."
She playfully rolled her eyes. "You sound like Rommus. You and he both need to take it easy. We're not going to be in any great danger when we go in there. Tho
se Mages are almost all morons. And their heavy robes make them terrible swordsmen. We'll run a few through, and the rest will run away. You'll see."
Alana checked the edge of her blade as Vohl walked over to the window. He clasped his hands behind his back as he stared in silence. Although she could not see much of his face from where she sat, she could see that something was bothering him. It was odd to see such a regal, noble man weighed down by emotion. She had known him long enough to know that something within him had changed. He had always been rather serious and somewhat formal, but there was always a lighter side. There was a genuine friendliness and a spark to his soul. She could always see the kindness in him, even though she needed to avoid direct eye contact. Lately, it seemed, he was hiding his inner self for some reason. He was shielding her from some secret boiling inside him.
"What is it Vohl? What has changed in you?"
"My Lady?" he said as he turned to face her.
"What is wrong with you? You seem very different to me lately. Is something wrong?"
Vohl sighed and rested his fingertips on a nearby table. "The more appropriate question would be to ask if something is right. There are many things that are wrong. Discussing those things would take too much time."
She wrinkled her nose at him. "That's a silly answer. Something is bothering you and for some reason you won't tell me what it is. Have you told Rommus?"
"I am sorry my Lady, but I cannot tell anyone. It is a burden that only my own heart must bear."
"Why? We are all friends here. We are here for each other. I know you spent a lot of your life alone because of those jerks you call your cousins, but those times are over now. We're like a family."
"I appreciate your concern Alana, I truly do. But I must ask you to leave me to my own thoughts on the matter. You cannot help me with this."
He used her name. It was the first time she could remember him calling her anything but "my Lady". It shouldn't have been a big deal at all, and in reality, it was only a word. But it rolled off his tongue in such a way that it immediately drew her attention. It was as if he was nervous about saying it, and had practiced it over and over before attempting it in front of her. On one hand it seemed staged, and on the other it seemed like a slip of the tongue.
Soul Under the Mountain (Legend of Reason Series) Page 11
