The Emperor's Shadow War (Tales of Alus Book 2)

by Donald Wigboldy

  The wizard hoped that maybe there was a chance for the two races joining against the Emperor and maybe that would be the humans’ true goal in this quest. Darius mused upon the thought, even after they had left the city once more on their trek north.

  Chapter 29- Dante

  Watching the city of Kalmer receding from the ferry as the boat carried the band of soldiers across the Taltan, the red of the rising sun left the western walls of the city a dark purple in contrast to the crimson rays of the early morning sun coming from behind the stone walls. The soldiers had risen early to leave the city and begin the next leg of their journey for a mysterious ring that Gannon had eluded to the night before.

  Dante was still puzzled over the true power of this ring that seemed so important. Having discussed the matter thoroughly with Valenia, the soldiers had considered what they knew to no avail. A ring seemed so small and ordinary to accomplish the defeat of some dark lord from another world. By the time the boat had docked upon the other shore, Dante had filed the perplexing thoughts away for another time. It was time to ride and pay attention to the world around them.

  The troops moved quickly towards the mountains forming the northwest border of Valos. They traveled with no guide as they went, other than Gannon, though Lord Ralmon had offered such assistance. Having assured the lord that no guide could provide the services that he could, Gannon had turned down such services politely but firmly. None could dispute the man's words, of course, and so they had left much as they had entered the great city.

  One small change had occurred though perhaps it was unimportant to most. As Dante looked at the crimson breeches that Valenia wore beneath her armored plate, the man figured that probably only he would be the only one to really care. His lover's tanned legs would be missed on the long trek ahead. He nearly laughed at such a petty thought, but as a man he thought of such inconsequential things.

  The women had acquired the breeches as well as other heavier clothing as had he and his men for their packs. Ralmon had assured them that the mountains would be cool at this time of year and probably still covered with snow in many places. Heavier clothing would be a necessity while searching the vast mountain range and the lord was more than glad enough to supply their needs for the expedition.

  Gannon pushed them hard as they drove into the westernmost forests of Valos. As they went, hills began to grow with each mile rode and soon they had topped their first true foothill and could see the edge of the mountains just before them.

  "Which one has the dragon's lair?" Calla asked as they paused to stare at the first of the great mountains before them.

  Gannon shrugged, "I'm not quite sure, though I know the general direction."

  "You don't know for sure!" the sergeant exclaimed as the others groaned in annoyance. She scrubbed her fingers through her raven black hair trying to pull the frustration from her as the woman continued from behind her hands, "Lord Ralmon offered to provide a guide into these mountains and you turned him down. I thought that you said you could guide us as well as any man he could provide."

  The seer grinned as he answered, "More to the point, sergeant, I meant that no guide could lead us any better. After all, no one knows where the dragon's lair is, since no one has seen it except the seer's of the Visionaries. Why send a guide to show where it is not, when we need to go deep into the range to find what no man has found before? Besides we have a guide of sorts," Gannon said pointing upwards to the raven, who had returned after they had crossed on the ferry and now flew overhead stretching its wings.

  "The bird?" Riad asked first, but for them all. "No offense to the lieutenant, but Misery is still just a bird. How is the raven going to lead us to it when it knows nothing of these lands either?"

  The seer smiled, "You'd be surprised, young man. Now enough, we have a lot of riding ahead so let's move."

  For four days, the band moved ever deeper into the mountains. Gannon never pointed out directions. They simply moved ever onwards and northwest following the great stone ways.

  The figure cloaked in black robes entered Kalmer the day after Dante and Valenia had left. People shied away from the man instinctively though none could truly say why. The figure spoke to few and used the darkest bars and taverns of the city to search for information about the heroes of the battle. Those he addressed, for its voice was masculine, could not flee, though deep inside their instincts warned them to run, and so every detail they knew of the battle and its victors was soon gleaned by the dark robed one.

  Eventually, the man must have realized that the common folk could tell him no more. Brazenly, the dark one stalked into the castle of Ralmon itself. No guard had the ability or desire to halt him. Many even answered the questions posed by the being to avoid his dark stare. Eventually, the creature found a hanger on that had heard of the quest into the west. The lesser noble nearly cried from fright as he seemed to be magically forced to tell all that he had heard at the banquet.

  Finished with the man, the robed creature snapped its fingers casually. The noble dropped soundlessly to the floor in death. Like a shade, the robed one retreated outside of the city. He walked towards the forest and found a large band of trolls and orcs and other things darker still. The robed one was patient and so they waited until nightfall to make their move across the river.

  Slipping around the city, the dark ones stole the ferry and its captain. The man slipped under the robed creature's power and sailed obediently across the river. Once there, the man collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut. The dark troops headed off at a run immediately. Howling from the creatures cut through the night air as the enemy rushed in search of the slayers of their army.

  Men and women of Kalmer would remark about the horrifying cries over the next days with fear on their faces. The deaths of several of its citizens would add to the panic before the city would settle down again.

  The robed one followed in the pack's midst atop its ebony mount, its’ magic shown in the horse's eyes with a reddish light like that of slowly burning embers of coal. The Dark Emperor had sent this band to search for those responsible for his lost army and the robed one and its magic would see to the score being reconciled.

  Within the cries of those around it, the robed one traveled silently like death on the wind.

  The cries of a man broke the camp's sleep. Dante slid from his embrace of Valenia, even as the couple drew their swords to confront the unknown. Few creatures had been seen for the past few days, but the soldiers had been feeling increasingly nervous for some strange reason that none could define. The cry of fear or warning was startling, but expected as well. Dante searched one way and Valenia the other. There was little that needed to be searched, however, since they camped upon a trail where the stone they lay upon fell immediately in the form of a sheer cliff face.

  A second cry broke the night and Gannon sat up in a panic. "Gannon?" Dante spoke questioningly to the screaming seer.

  The man shook his head and quickly the cobwebs of sleep and the dream slipped from his eyes. "Dante?" he asked back. "I'm sorry I hadn't meant to wake you."

  "What happened?"

  Calla asked wryly, "Did you have a bad dream, old man?"

  Gannon surprised them all and answered, "Yes, I did. Captain, lieutenant, we are being followed, if I interpret my dream accurately and I think that I do."

  "What do you mean?" Dante was the first to ask worriedly.

  "Seers never dream unless it is to foretell something about to happen. Normally, the dreams are intentionally chased, but then there are also times that they sneak up on us."

  "What if it isn't just a normal dream? How can anyone be sure, if you are foretelling an act or just dreaming?"

  With a brief sigh, Gannon's eyes narrowed as he answered the lieutenant. "We know. Our lives are given to our strict lessons of dreaming and I tell you that my sect doesn't `just dream’, as you put it. Now then, as I was saying, a vision has warned me that even now the enemy chases us into these mountains."r />
  "Do they know of the quest then?" Sergeant Lane asked as his fingers rubbing his scar upon his cheek thoughtfully.

  Dante nodded, "Could the Dark Emperor have learned of it, Gannon?"

  Shrugging noncommittally, the seer responded, "I cannot tell, but there is a band trying to catch us. I sense that an unusual being leads them, a being of powerful magic. I fear that, if they catch us before we find the dragon's lair, all will be lost."

  The lieutenant looked at Gannon angrily, "How can we find the lair before they catch up to us, if we don't know where it is, seer? Explain that to me, if you will!"

  The man sighed and thought a moment. Snapping his fingers, he remembered, "Use the raven. You have said that Misery only sends visions when something important happens or is about to. Have you not? Well, I believe that we have come to a point where we need such divination and perhaps a miracle."

  "I didn't know that it had been made public, but that is normally true," Dante replied guardedly. "But I have seen through the bird's eyes other times as well, of late."

  Looking slightly unhappy with the lieutenant's last words, Gannon still answered, "It is still a better shot than anything else that I can think of, lieutenant. Send Misery into flight towards the different mountains. When you receive a vision indicating the dragon's whereabouts, that is the mountain that we will go to."

  Though he was not convinced of the validity of such a charge, Dante still went to the raven and offered his arm as a perch rather than the horse's saddle he taken to roost. Misery came willingly. Turning to face one of the mountains yet to be visited, the man shot his arm up quickly enough to start the bird flying. The raven didn't seem alarmed by the idea and flew in the direction that the man wished slightly to his surprise. Dante and the others watched as Misery's form shrunk into the distance.

  The band was completely awake and they decided to take the time to eat breakfast. An hour passed and no sign of the raven came. Deciding that staying put would probably give the enemy a better chance of finding them, they packed up and continued along the trail towards their original next targeted mountain.

  The day passed and still no sign of the raven was found.

  Valenia asked, as they began to light a cook fire that evening, "What happened to Misery? Have you received any visions at all?"

  Shaking his head gloomily, Dante replied, "I'm just hoping that he hasn't decided to leave me permanently now that I need him. I've never sent him off like that, after all, and Misery is just a bird. Maybe he thinks that I don't want him anymore?"

  The woman put her arm around his shoulders to comfort him and said, "I think that he knows that isn't the case. Remember you two have an unusual bond. I'm sure that Misery knows that you want him back and also that we need his help."

  "I guess," the man replied staring into the night sky in the direction that the raven had gone.

  It was very late into the night and Dante lay holding his lover in his arms unable to fully fall asleep. Worry still filled him over the raven's lengthy departure, when a sudden vision began to fill his mind.

  It began brokenly and Dante sat up with a start as soon as the first piece drove into his mental vision. Valenia awoke, but said nothing after realizing what was happening. A vision of a mountain's slope rushed along below the bird's flight. Dante thought that the raven's sight picked up on a dark fissure in the middle of the mountain's side despite the dark of night.

  A sudden burst of reddish light caught Misery's eye from deep within the opening. Only if someone were looking for it could a human have spotted such a brief glimmering, but the raven had done so. Dante turned where he sat and seemed to fix on the raven's direction.

  Pointing, he spoke softly, "There."

  The vision began to fade and the connection vanished. Dante stood looking in the direction that his finger intended. In the darkness, he could just make out the darker shadow of a mountain beneath the purple sky.

  Gannon nodded from beside him. "We have our direction."

  "Should we leave now?" Lane asked from nearby.

  Dante turned to look at the seer, and asked, "What do you think, Gannon? It's dark, but the moons can probably supply us with enough light to proceed. Is the enemy near enough to worry?"

  "I don't know!" the man suddenly exclaimed before realizing that he had nearly shouted. "I'm sorry; Dante, but I do not know how close the enemy is. The dreams make me fearful, but I do not want to push these people to the point of exhaustion."

  "Fine, then it is up to us to decide. Does anyone think that they can sleep now anyway?" Dante asked.

  The general consensus seemed of a mind to travel after hearing the news of their quest's destination. They remounted then and started into the night. Dante had made sure that they take one precaution though. Everyone tied off in groups of four in case someone should start to fall asleep as the first in line led his or her horse along the path. Hopefully, the others in the group would lead a sleeping compatriot through in safety. In fact, once they began traveling he decided that the riders should take turns sleeping and tied atop their mounts, while others took the lead rope and steered the horses along the path towards the far off dragon's lair.

  Daylight found them soon enough and no mishaps had occurred as they descended from the mountain and had begun a new ascent. As they traveled, Sergeant Lane suddenly asked, "Lieutenant? You wouldn't happen to know just which mountain Misery found, would you?"

  Dante turned to the man in surprise. "Actually, I hadn't thought of that. I was just glad to have the raven find it. I think that it's just over this one though."

  The sergeant shook his head sadly, "You think? I hope that you're right."

  "Why?"

  "Now don't start getting real worried just yet, but a little while ago I thought that I heard a far off howl. It seemed to come from behind us, but with the echoes in these canyons, I could be wrong."

  "Damn," Dante replied quietly and looked back at the mountains behind them. He remembered the strange wolf-like creatures that the enemy had already used before and wondered if the howls were related or just the calls of some mountain beasts.

  At least, the lieutenant had been right in his guess about their destined mountain. Late in the afternoon, Dante and his band topped the crest of the rise before it. The sight of the next mountain and the strange scar-like fissure running vertically up its slope sent waves of relief through him. A small dark form flew up from the small valley separating the two as they looked down. "Look," he said pointing.

  A cheer went up from the band despite a worried look from Gannon. Dante caught him in a brief glance over his shoulder and knew that the shouts covered everyone else's worries as well. He said nothing of it and urged the others onward towards Misery and mountain.

  Chapter 30- Darius

  Many villages and towns dotted the Alian Plain. Traveling with mixed feelings as they moved along the thoroughfare, Darius first emotion was the enjoyment that he experienced by traveling to places he had never been. The people here worked and lived much as those in Eirhden did, but there were those little touches that let him know that home was now hundreds of miles behind him. It was much like the contrast of the river cities to western Eirhden, though he had considered the cities of the west quite large, the populations congregated in the Fel's Reach put them all to shame. Clothing and jewelry had changed adorning the people around them and seemed to be an important part of life in the big cities.

  Guessing that it was simply the feel of the rural or country life versus the urban trade cities, the wizard noted other things about the new country they were passing through. Alia was a whole new ecosystem as well. Darius noticed a shift from the typical stone structures of Eirhden to those of wood here and many smaller towns sported multi-floored complexes where different families lived separately but attached to each other as well. Darius had heard the word for it once, apartments. Though they hadn't gone into Fel itself, the wizard had heard of living conditions were very similar in and near the main
castle. Such distinctions were best left to others, he decided, so the wizard just enjoyed the sights as they revealed themselves.

  The second main emotion he felt was worry.

  People were everywhere on the plain. Trade and commerce between the communities brought out travelers more than ever before on their trip. Darius often thought that he caught looks or the occasional pointing finger as the elves and wizards passed by on the roads. Hoping that the wizards were the focus, Darius knew often in history there had been occasions where one set of people would attack the unknown out of fear or superstition. Should such a large population as found in Alia suddenly choose to take action in fear, even the wizards would be hard pressed to save the elves before such numbers surrounding the travelers.

  Luckily, his fears so far remained unjustified and the band was able to cross the northwestern edge of the Great Forest without fulfilling any of his fears of discovery for next two days either. There they pushed into the forest itself on the eastern end of the plains. This was a change in their original plans of returning to follow the Gen River, as the eastern feeder river was known. Having been advised by the locals that the forests were cut and tamed to the point of having several major highways to Tolmona, it was considered the safer and quicker of the two routes. Even a village or two lay within as stopping points on the way for supplies or shelter.

  They found one such road and entered bravely.

  Unfortunately, the band had not gotten an early enough start to make the first forest town. Night began to descend and the band was lucky enough to find a camp area just before they would have given up and camped in or near the roadside itself. The camp ground was already occupied by a few other small groups of tradesmen, but there was still plenty of room for the additional people to settle in.