Avondale V

by Toby Neighbors

  “Easy enough for wagons?” the earl asked.

  “I believe so,” Olyva said. “There are dangers, of course, but not from the land itself. Your soldiers should be more than able to hold back any animal attack.”

  “Olyva made a kill on her own, yesterday,” Rafe said.

  “Yes, that news has already reached me. They say the fur you took is quite exotic.”

  “I was defending myself and my sister,” Olyva said. “I only took the hide because it seemed a waste to leave it. I doubt the tanners will have time to do anything with it.”

  “It was still a prize,” the earl said. “There may be very few in the weeks ahead. Why do you doubt that the skin can be tanned. Do you have more to report?”

  “I do, my lord. It is the mountain. I fear an eruption is inevitable. I can feel the pressure building up below the city.”

  “You can feel the pressure?” the earl asked, obviously suspicious.

  “I know it sounds strange,” Olyva said. “But I can feel it. I can feel changes in air pressure, and there is a massive buildup of pressure within the mountain. There is movement, too, but you know that already. Something is stirring the mountain to life.”

  Earl Ageus looked down at Olyva’s feet. They were muddy, her long toes covered in wet soil from the planter. Then he looked up and into her eyes.

  “I’ve always been good at reading people,” he said. “I can almost always tell when a person is lying. I didn’t see many things in my children because I didn’t want to see them. But I can tell when someone isn’t being honest with me. What I need to know is if you really can sense what you claim to feel or if you’re insane.”

  “My lord,” Rafe said. “She saved our lives more than once in the blighted lands. She predicted rain, and it rained. She knew one of the huge creatures was coming, so we were able to prepare. And she saved an entire tribe of Hoskali people from a poisoned stream.”

  “Well, I suppose I have very little to lose,” the earl said. “If you’re wrong and nothing happens, then the citizens can return to their homes no worse for wear. But the war band will stay, of course. How much time do you think we have?”

  “I really don’t know,” Olyva said. “I can feel the pressure building and I might be able to give a warning, but not enough to evacuate the city. I doubt it would be enough to save myself if the mountain erupts the way I’m afraid it will.”

  “But you’re confident that everyone will be safe at the bottom of the mountain?”

  “I am,” Olyva said.

  “All right, I’ll gather the people,” Earl Ageus said. “Rafe, send runners. I want the entire city at the main gate in three hours. Will you be ready to lead them out tomorrow?”

  “Yes, my lord,” Olyva said, feeling a tremor of fear as she answered.

  “How long will it take to get everyone down?”

  “The journey by foot will take a full day,” Olyva said. “But the elderly and children could be carried down by sky skip. The vessel from Hamill Keep is perfectly suited for such duty.”

  “That’s true,” the earl said thoughtfully. “We could move down supplies that way as well. There is still much to be done. Thank you for taking our people to safety.”

  “It is my honor to serve, Lord Ageus.”

  The earl and Rafe strode swiftly away, and Olyva stood watching for moment. She wasn’t sure what she could accomplish in just one evening. She still felt very tired, but she needed to speak to her mother. Countess Mauryn would not like the fact that Olyva had volunteered to use the Hamill Keep sky ship as a ferry to take people down the mountain.

  Chapter 17

  Leonosis

  Draggah was impatient. He had reveled in the freedom he felt leaving Sparlan Citadel, but that joy had quickly faded. The voyage across the sea of mist that covered the blighted lands was dull by any standard. Even in a grand ship of war, which the royal sky ship was, the seemingly endless expanse of mist was tedious. Draggah, whose eyesight was more keen than Leonosis’ (or anyone’s on the ship, for that matter), still had nothing to look at, but he paced the command deck just the same.

  Unlike the other sky ships, the Sparlan Citadel vessel was fully armed. There were catapults in the bow and archery stations along the rails. On the bottom of the ship, there were small bay doors that could be opened to allow the ship to drop fire bombs (or anything else) down on any helpless creature below. The ship carried a contingent of the king’s guard, even though the sailors were all armed and trained in warcraft. The main deck was more narrow than the lavish ship from Avondale or the broad supply vessel from Hamill Keep. There was an elevated deck at midships where the captain saw to the sailing of the vessel, but an even taller deck was situated at the stern and was for the private use of the king. The command deck was also the roof of the king’s compact, but opulent stateroom.

  From the height of the command deck, Draggah could see everyone on the main deck and out on the rigging or masts. A shouted order could be heard by everyone, including the captain, who had no illusions about who was in control of the vessel. Draggah had enjoyed watching his underlings scurrying about the ship, making sure all was well. He also enjoyed looking behind the vessel, where his magnificent fleet of warships spread out in a well ordered formation.

  But leaving Sparlan Citadel was not easy for Draggah. Leonosis, prisoner though he was in his own body, could feel the strain the distance from the capital put on the demon. Something—Leonosis had no idea what it was—tied Draggah to that particular mountain. Draggah retained full control over Leonosis, but he had dropped his hold over the other earls. Life would go on in those cities just as it always had. The demon had learned as much as he needed about each one and ensured that Leonosis’ coronation had been properly carried out. Now, the noble families of each city could fight over the right to be the next earl; Draggah had no interest in their local politics. Soon, the demon planned to enslave them all, and when that time came, he would have the Balestone, ensuring that no one could stop him.

  Leonosis had also been given a reprieve from the constant torment the demon usually inflicted on him. The demon had removed as much of his mind from Leonosis as possible, even erecting a barrier of sorts. Leonosis didn’t understand it and he didn’t care. He had no control over his body, but he finally had the demon out of his mind. He could think whatever he wanted, and Draggah was none the wiser. Leonosis knew the demon could return at any moment and lay bare all of Leo’s most secret thoughts, but he couldn’t help but ponder the fact that Draggah seemed weaker the farther they traveled.

  In fact, as Leonosis thought about things, Draggah had been confined to the space at the center of the castle when he’d arrived. Draggah had been trying to take control of the king’s son, but the poor child simply wasn’t strong enough to host the vile demon. When Leonosis, full of arrogant pride, had forced himself on Princess Ariel, she had revealed the true power in Sparlan Citadel, and Draggah had found a new home inside Leonosis. But Leo couldn’t help but hope that the demon’s hold over him was slipping.

  Food was brought for Leonosis, but he refused to eat. Leonosis suffered the pangs of starvation with absolutely no way to feed his body. The demon rarely allowed Leonosis to sleep. Leo’s mind sometimes wandered, falling into a dreamlike state, but his physical body was wasting away. It was a horrid torture, and Leonosis felt as though every nerve in his body was crying for relief, but he couldn’t solve the problem while Draggah retained control of his physical body.

  The wind was cold, but Draggah didn’t seem to care. The sun, when its rays weren’t blocked by the massive hylum sail overhead, scorched his exposed skin, but there was nothing Leonosis could do but suffer.

  Princess Ariel was on the lavish ship as well, but she had her own stateroom and she rarely emerged from it. Leonosis longed to see her, to speak with her and share his misery, but Draggah wouldn’t let him speak. He was as lonely as he’d ever been, and the isolation was starting to play tricks with his mind. He let his thoughts
turn inward and he dreamed about death. If he could die, he reasoned, he would be free from his body and therefore free from the demon.

  Days had passed since they had left Sparlan Citadel, but in the lingering daze Leonosis drifted in, he couldn’t tell how long the journey had taken. He was in a state of numb, uncomprehending limbo when he felt a sudden thrill. It was as if a jolt of excited happiness had suddenly shot through his weary mind. It shocked Leonosis back into a fully conscious state, and through Draggah’s enhanced vision, he could see a dark spot in the distance. The day was growing late, and the sun was beginning to drift down toward the horizon behind them, but something was clearly visible in the distance. And only one thing would be visible above the mists. It was Avondale, the glorious city, sitting on the pinnacle of the ancient volcano like a king’s crown.

  “Finally,” Draggah uttered.

  The jolt of excitement had pierced the wall between the demon’s mind and Leonosis’ own thoughts, but now the barrier was fully back in place. Still, Leonosis was a silent observer to all that happened.

  “Food!” Draggah bellowed. “And wine! Summon my queen and raise the war flag.”

  There was a sudden flurry of activity. Servants appeared with a folding table and chair. Food was brought. There was fruit, cheese, bread, puddings, seasoned fowl, a variety of vegetables, and desserts dripping with honey and dotted with candied nuts.

  A large crystal goblet was filled with wine, and Draggah took his seat at the table. He ate with no thought to the food’s taste, but Leonosis marveled over every succulent morsel. He was so giddy at being fed he wanted to cry, but he dared not draw the demon’s attention. The wine spread a warmth through Leonosis’ body that it hadn’t felt since leaving Sparlan Citadel. And the tired, cramping muscles relaxed somewhat.

  “You summoned me,” Queen Ariel said irritably as she climbed the wide staircase that led to the command deck.

  “Our prize is in sight,” Draggah said.

  “Where?” the queen asked, turning around to look for Avondale. “I don’t see anything.”

  “Use your powers, fool,” Draggah taunted. “How quickly you forget your own abilities.”

  “Ultimus Conspectus,” Ariel said softly.

  She had cast the spell almost under her breath, but Leonosis heard her. He was riveted by the very sight of her. Ariel was the one person who knew of his enslavement. She alone had not forgotten him, he was certain of that. They were fellow victims of Draggah’s evil machinations, a bond that Leonosis hoped wouldn’t break.

  “And now you see,” Draggah almost cooed. “The Balestone is close—I can feel it. The earl’s son won’t be able to keep it from me. I shall tear down that wretched city brick by brick if that is what it takes to find him. Then, we shall have our victory, my sweet.”

  Leonosis suddenly felt ill. Draggah was going to destroy Avondale, and there was absolutely nothing he could do to stop it. Leonosis always felt a pang of regret when Draggah unleashed his merciless fury on a lowly servant or disappointing soldier, but those were minor losses. In truth, even though Leonosis didn’t want to see anyone fall under Draggah’s influence or fury, he didn’t care for the lives of those people. Other than Queen Ariel, Leonosis didn’t care about anyone. But he cared about Avondale. It was his home. It was beautiful and strong, yet Leonosis had no doubt that Draggah would happily raze it to the ground to achieve his purposes.

  “And I shall rule, remember that. You promised me that I would rule over the nine cities,” Ariel said in an almost petulant whine.

  “Of course—I have no interest in the lives of mortals, only in their suffering. Soon,” Draggah said happily, his lips smacking and still wet from wine, “my conquest will be complete.”

  The laughter that followed was wicked, and even though it came from Leonosis’ physical body, it was clearly not human. Leo tried to block out the sound but he couldn’t. Nor could he keep from seeing the terror of the hardened soldiers who heard it and looked to the command deck to see their king, cackling like a mad man. If only they knew, Leonosis thought. If only they could comprehend what Draggah planned to do to them, to Valana, to the entire world, they would throw themselves from the sky ship and welcome their deaths gladly. But no one knew the depravity that awaited, only Leonosis. And he couldn’t tell a soul.

  Chapter 18

  Tiberius

  Tiberius sat down to think. The people who hid the Emerystone only intended for someone with magical power to find it. But Tiberius didn’t know a levitation spell, and he couldn’t think of how to get the box at the bottom of the well out.

  “If not for the oil, I could climb down and get the box,” Lexi said. “It doesn’t look that heavy.”

  “I can’t figure out how to get past the oil,” Tiberius said.

  “Well, it couldn’t have been an easy test, could it? I mean, they didn’t want just anyone being able to retrieve the stone.”

  “So what are you saying?”

  “I guess I would focus on your most advanced spells,” Lexi explained. “There was too much at stake to risk having someone find the stone and retrieve it because they solved a riddle or knew enough magic to be dangerous. They would only want the most talented wizards to be able to find the stone.”

  “That’s right!” Tiberius said excitedly. “The old wizards of the Four Orders insisted that a person master one Order before moving on to the next. And there are three types of spells in the fourth order—basic, intermediate, and advanced. My light spell is a basic spell of the Fourth Order. Maybe that is why this room is so dark.”

  “And regular torch or candlelight would be deadly around the oil,” Lexi said encouragingly.

  “The long curving hallway ensures that no outside light could reach this inner room. So we had to use the light spell.”

  Tiberius’ mind was suddenly reeling with possibilities. If using the basic spell for light was the first test to finding the Emerystone, could the oil be a second, more difficult test? He thought about the intermediate spells of the Fourth Order. The basic fire spell grew into the lightning spell. But that wouldn’t help them inside the sturdy dome-shaped building. Even if he conjured lightning inside the dome, it would ignite the oil. The basic light spell graduated to focused light. It was a very powerful spell, one that Tiberius had used to cut through stone and metal when the wizard at Devonyr had captured him and shackled him to the wall. It might be possible to use the focused light spell to cut a hole in the side of the well and drain the oil out, but it would take a massive amount of work. It would also destroy the dome, and the heat from the spell could ignite the oil, just like lightning would.

  The third basic spell was wind, which in the intermediate stage became a cyclone. At first Tiberius couldn’t imagine how the cyclone spell could help him with the oil, but then he realized that it might be possible to spin the oil. As a child he loved to swirl his drinks with a spoon until they resembled a whirlpool. He would imagine himself onboard a tiny ship trying to survive the swirling waters. Of course he could never swirl the water or juice fast enough to create a proper whirlpool, but with the strength of the cyclone, it might be possible.

  “I have an idea,” Tiberius said. “It might work, but it’s risky.”

  “Tell me,” Lexi said.

  “I think it might be possible to use my cyclone spell to spin the oil, creating a tunnel down to the box.”

  “A tunnel?” Lexi asked, not understanding.

  “Yes. See when the liquid is spinning, the sides rise up, and the middle dips down. It’s like a whirlpool.”

  “And you think you can do that with the oil?”

  “Maybe,” Tiberius said. “None of the other spells have a chance of helping.”

  “So then I could climb down and get the box,” Lexi said.

  “No, the walls will be covered with the spinning oil.”

  “So how do we get the box?”

  “I’ll have to lower you down with a rope.”

  “You’re going t
o lower me down into a whirlpool of oil, while casting the spell?”

  “Two spells,” Tiberius said. “If you want to be able to see, that is.”

  “Tiberius, I trust you. If you think you can do it, I’ll try. But you do know that if something happens, I’ll probably drown in the oil.”

  “Yes, and I would never let that happen,” Tiberius said. “Let me just see if the spell will even work. If it does, then we’ll try and lower you down.”

  Lexi nodded and stepped back. She retrieved the long coil of rope that Tiberius had brought and began inspecting it. Tiberius got on his knees and stared down into the well. He had never cast two spells of the Fourth Order at the same time. There was nothing in his book of magic that warned him against such a feat, but he knew the toll that casting the powerful intermediate spells took on him. The need for total concentration was so high that he wasn’t sure he could control both the cyclone and the light spell, not to mention holding up Lexi’s weight.

  Still, he didn’t feel like he had a choice. They had to get the Emerystone, and he could see no other way to get past the oil well. He closed his mind and concentrated on the light spell. Over the past several hours, he’d gotten used to having the magical portal open. It was almost like having a ringing in his ears. He was always aware of it, but his mind had gotten used to blocking the distraction out of his conscious thoughts. He only hoped he could keep it up while he cast another spell, but there was only one way to find out.

  “Furibundus Nimbosus,” he whispered softly. “Furibundus Nimbosus.”

  He chanted the spell over and over, keeping the light portal at bay, while pushing the powerful magic of the cyclone winds down into the well. He opened his eyes once he heard the sounds of the thick liquid beginning to stir.

  “Furibundus Nimbosus,” he chanted a little louder, as he watched the amber-colored oil beginning to spin around the sides of the well.

  His heart was beating fast, and he was using only the slightest hold on the cyclone. The well was the perfect container for the powerful force, so he didn’t have to wrestle with controlling where the wind tunnel went. It was a static spell, and the oil was so thick he could let the spell erupt at almost full force. His mind felt as if it were pulling in opposite directions, but he felt strong enough to control the magic, which was exactly what he hoped to be able to do.