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

by Donald Wigboldy

  "The armor is the key," Darius stated firmly. "The Visionaries did not say that it was the only way to defeat the Dark Emperor, but that there was need for it."

  "That is the same thing," another elder protested.

  "No," Janus argued. His words drew their attention away from Darius as they longed for answers. "The armor is needed in so far that its power is just that, a power. Its might may get us the victories that we need to turn the tide of battle, but we will need more than that to truly defeat this creature. I know this with my heart. The armor cannot defeat the Emperor himself this time. He is prepared for it. Alig had the benefit of surprising him once, but the Emperor has tested his might against both it and death. He is the stronger for it."

  "And how can you know this?" Thien asked, though he appeared to be falling into belief.

  Janus looked at the floor and while he did so, there was complete silence in the hall. Finally the knight looked up and answered, "I was there with Alig."

  "Oh, come now!" Thien said jumping to his feet.

  Darius groaned seeing the advantage lost. "You would have to be a thousand or more years old to have witnessed such a thing. How can anyone have lived so long?" He glanced to Darius, "Have you heard of such a thing, Wizard Darius?"

  Darius was quiet a moment and realized that he had an answer. "Only one other," he pronounced quietly. "The Grimnal of the North Continent is rumored to be over five hundred years old. He is said to have silvery-white hair that he has had since birth. Such a thing is rare in the extreme." He pulled a lock of his hair and noted its silver sheen mixed with the blond. Casting the thought aside as being silly, Darius remembered his mother telling him once that his hair hadn’t always had silver. It could easily have been the use of magic. Everyone knew that there were consequences to its use, and his powers were greater than most now with perhaps more consequences as well. Bringing his mind back to the matter at hand, the wizard said, "If that story is true for one, couldn't it be possible for more than one?"

  Janus strode forward towards Thien, "You know that our touch is rumored to be anathema to each other's race, do you not?" At the dwarf's nod, he continued, "Your race has changed much in this world, but still there is the discomfort of each other's touch. I am older and have more magic inherent in myself than most of my people. I offer to touch you all that you may remember our differences that we may go on from here."

  The knight took each man's hand in turn. Their eyes showed their mild discomfort at the elf's touch. Some touched him on a shoulder or the face to see if it wasn't just a trick of the hand. Soon all had touched Janus, and Darius noted the new looks in their eyes. The elf stepped back and began quoting names and pointing to each elder in turn.

  Darius didn't understand and turned to Electra who noticed his look. "He remembers the touch of their families and gives them their family names without being told. After the great battle, the tales say that two holy knights shook hands with each head of the dwarven families. They did so despite the great pain as a way of sealing a pact of trust between the two races. The pact said that should the Dark One reappear, the races would work together again to see to his defeat once more."

  "If that's true, then why don't the other dwarves fight alongside your people?"

  The woman sighed, "Time causes words to fade as well as deeds as you have just seen here. Janus and the other one tried to go to the dwarven kings when they first found the Emperor's return. You must remember that our differences are more pronounced in my old world and such differences would not let more than a few kings honor their bargain. That is why my town fled our world with Janus' help. There isn't enough true resistance besides the elves. We lost once and we fail even now. The kings who joined us didn't have the armor or the strength to defeat the Dark Emperor. They have fallen and the other high knight has turned from us to follow the darkness as well."

  "Camare?" he whispered remembering the dark elf in the forest only days ago.

  She only nodded.

  "Gods. No wonder Janus was so distracted after the meeting."

  "You only know the half of it," she whispered. Janus looked back at them as he spoke quietly to the dwarves who seemed convinced by his demonstration. The knight nodded to Electra as if he knew what she had been saying to Darius and what she wished to still say. "Camare and Janus were around at the same time because they are twin brothers."

  "Gods!" he breathed and looked to Janus reevaluating the man. "The Emperor even has the power to separate brothers from each other?"

  "That is why I fear for both of you," she replied and leaned her head against his shoulder with a sigh. "The Emperor has a way of tainting everything he chooses to take. I fear the day that he chooses to try and conquer the two of you."

  "Don't worry about me. I'll never turn from what I know to be the proper course, and I don't think Janus will either," he assured. "He may defeat us, but I will not surrender my beliefs or myself to him, Electra. I promise."

  The meeting hall cleared of all but Darius' band and Dorvin. A few guardsmen now stood near the doors of the building and the wizard noted their stares at those still speaking with their leader. He wondered how the city of Upper Darvus would react if those above ground knew of the truth about the dwarves and their leader. Dorvin was virtually a king though he lived much like the other dwarves. A second king to the human one above ground could prove to be a problem. After all the centuries following those original arrangements, he doubted that any besides the dwarves knew of the underground king.

  Dorvin had explained that the royal line above ground had first been put into power by Alig and his people centuries ago. After a time, the dwarven lords began to pay less attention to the royals above and now, it was virtually two cities and kingdoms in truth. The king above cared nothing about those below ground and considered them beneath his notice both literally and figuratively. This served the dwarves well enough, because the world also tended to forget about them.

  Taxes were separate from each kingdom. The dwarves policed their own city while those above dealt with the population of Upper Darvus and the rest of the kingdom that had sprung from the double city over the centuries.

  "What if King Falin ever decided to try and rule your city directly?" Darius asked at one point during the discussion.

  Dorvin snorted, "I doubt that particular king would ever bother. He seems to believe the myth that Lower Darvus is just a wasteland of mines below him. We allow that thought to persist as much as possible, mind you. If the man should ever care, or those of his lineage, there are documents written up by the builders of this city that show our separateness. He can hardly miss the legal rights of my people."

  "What if he doesn't care about a piece of paper written so long ago?"

  This time, the dwarf grinned like a wolf among a flock of sheep. "Then we will go to war to establish ourselves. Our weapons are of the best quality and our warriors are well trained, though your race is never allowed to see our men practicing. The very placement of our city makes it incredibly defensible and they could hardly try anything drastic to reach us or destroy the stone above for fear of destroying their own homes."

  "True," the wizard admitted. "So how long do you think that it will take you to gather up the armor and whatever forces you'll send with us to the old world?"

  The dwarf began pacing and pulled thoughtfully at his beard. "Not long, I would hope. I know where the actual armor is, though not the shield and sword. I believe the elders are ready to give me the other two pieces, but I'm not certain how many men will be willing to leave with us."

  Darius asked with renewed concern, "Surely we have convinced them of the need to send a significant force?"

  Dorvin shrugged. "I'm convinced and have men loyal to me. These I know will follow to the man. Those that traveled in my caravan to Alia and those guarding me here, are just some of those. How many more will come as volunteers? That I can only guess at, I'm afraid.

  "The elders, and the general population as wel
l, are not truly looking to go to war. They will gladly fight for their homes, but this war will not look like that them. I cannot promise you much beyond my own willingness."

  "But we tried to tell them that this is a fight for their homes as much as it is for mine and the old world."

  Again the dwarf shrugged, "Too many of my people are like Thien now. They would rather argue that it is someone else's duty, rather than their own, until the threat looms at their actual doorstep."

  Darius sighed, "Ah, well. The seers must have seen this as well, I should think. Besides, we will hardly be alone there. There are whole races fighting the Dark Emperor even now. All we have to do is join with them to find enough allies to stop the Emperor. Right?"

  A chuckle that sounded completely humorless caught the two by surprise. Both turned to see Janus shaking his head. "There may be none left to fight by the time we get there, Darius. If what Camare said was true, then we may have no one aside from those that we bring with us."

  A dark look crossed the wizard's face and even Janus was forced to blink in worry. "Why would you believe his words, holy knight? The Emperor would hardly want you or I to try and unite any forces against him would he? What better way do you know than to tell your enemy to give up without trying? I would hardly take his words to heart, my friend. The Emperor may have destroyed much, but I think that there will always be someone willing to fight his evil, if we simply look."

  Sighing loudly, Janus bowed his head ashamed of himself. "You are right, of course, Darius. I allowed myself to listen to my brother's words like some fool. It saddens me to think that he may be right and that I will have to fight both family and friends to stop him. That is all."

  The wizard stepped to the elf and laid a hand gently upon the man's shoulder. "Don't worry. We'll find a way to defeat the Dark Emperor without having to fall to fighting them I should think. Like I said, I hardly think that the Emperor controls your world as well as Camare would have you believe."

  "I hope you are right."

  Dorvin stepped over quickly and motioned for the others to follow. "Enough! You depress me, elf! Come, let us go and eat. Perhaps we can go to a tavern and see if we can't find a way to lighten that heavy heart of yours."

  The dwarf took Electra and Janus each by a sleeve and pulled them towards the door. Shrugging, Darius and Bagheer followed along behind the three. They would worry about things later, the wizard decided, besides it would give the others a chance to catch up to them as well. Determined to put his troubles behind him for the evening at least, Darius hurried after the energetic dwarf.

  Chapter 39- Dante

  Dohman and a handful of other dwarves stepped into camp exactly as the soldiers doused the fire following their breakfast. Little was said, and Dante simply allowed the dwarves to lead him and the others along a path that was much more manageable than they would probably have found for themselves.

  If there was one thing these dwarves knew, he thought, it was how to travel through mountains. Their guides were more sure footed than the best of his people. The horses could follow the path easily enough as well and of that Dante was especially glad. After the week of trying to lead horses through mountains by hand that had been strenuous enough to make this change seem the greatest of rests, the soldiers were glad that the creatures needed no extra help to make their way other than to hold the reins before them.

  The trip, though easy enough, turned out to be long and drawn out. The path was gentle, but took the company nearly the better part of the day to find a bustling little camp tucked away in the crook of three mountains.

  Dante took in the sight of dozens of tents quickly. It was what the dwarves wanted you to see. A force would most likely guess them to be the main threat. The lieutenant had seen enough to know to look deeper. Finding the true goal set into the easternmost slope of the three mountains, Dante nodded. There, nearly completely hidden beneath a large canvas tent, was the opening to a cave.

  Its mouth was enormous. That was the first thing the man noticed. Second was the shape of the hole. Cut into a nearly flawless rectangle, the opening easily revealed its handmade origins. Dwarves by the dozens moved in and out of the entrance pushing carts, some leaden with stone exiting the opening and others entering with the empties. Other men and even women carried pick axes and shovels to and from the sight.

  "Dohman?" he asked.

  The dwarf didn't bother to turn to answer, "We work on our new home, lieutenant."

  "You plan to live in a mountain?" Riad asked for him. "That's strange."

  The dwarf turned and looked at the private unamused. "This is the way we lived in the old world and we will find a way to live so again here. We dwarves have a long history of carving out mountain homes for ourselves. It is in our blood to live with the stone guarding us and we will be guarding our lairs.

  "Note the stream at the west end of the valley. It will serve us as will the valley. Food can be grown easily enough both here and within the caves. We pick our city sights carefully, though perhaps this one was a little rushed due to circumstances."

  "What has happened, Dohman?" Dante asked. "I would have thought that your people would have died trying to protect your homes in the old world."

  The dwarf's face showed pain at the question. "Many have. We can not win and the three tribes of Min, Yushk and Elik have decided to try this world as our legends say some did before us."

  "Elik? I thought that there were only two tribes here."

  "Elik's people came asking to join us this morning before I came to gather your soldiers. Many of their warriors died trying to buy them the time to sneak away to come here."

  "If they can find you, don't you fear that the Dark Emperor will find your route here as well?" Dante asked as they began the final descent into the valley towards the tents. The dwarf was willing to talk finally, and the man was going to try and learn what he could before meeting any more of the race.

  Dohman seemed unconcerned by giving the information away and answered, "The passage is guarded by one of our largest and most fortified cities on the other side. The door is hidden deep inside of a mine that our people only discovered in their digging a decade ago. It took nearly that long to dig through the doorway to this opening. About a year ago, as we noticed the return of the Dark One's ways, the city began to expand upon the excavations on this side of the doorway.

  "It was decided, that should it be necessary to flee, this side would need to be ready. The families of Min and Yushk had worked this side for nearly the entire decade, but recently the family, Elik, requested to come through in exchange for help with the mining. Today the first of them arrived through the doorway."

  "Is the city on the other side under attack then?"

  "Not yet, but it will not be long we fear. Come along now. Any other questions will have to be answered in the presence of the leaders. We have dallied long enough and I have given all that I am allowed to tell."

  The camp hardly seemed to take any notice of Dante and his soldiers as they entered the outskirts of the tents. The grown-ups refused to acknowledge them at all. The children, on the other hand, were found scampering around them in surprising numbers for what seemed to be a bustling work site. With big eyes and shy smiles, the dwarven children kept pace with them while managing to stay directly out from under the hooves of the horses.

  "They're cute," Valenia said pointing out their little admirers.

  About half the size of their parents and full of energy as all children were, Dante admitted to himself that they were, but said nothing. He did, however, cast a glance at the captain. She was smiling and holding the hand of one particularly brave little girl. The girl spoke in the same language as all the other children, which was most likely that of Gilman, whom they had heard speak the night before.

  Valenia tousled the girl's hair as she continued to smile at her. "Do you like children, Dante?"

  "They are fine in their place, yes," the soldier answered gruffly. He did not like wher
e the conversation was already leading. One thing that he had not figured the captain to be was a softy for children. It wasn't something that one would associate with a female soldier trying to prove herself in a typically man's field.

  Dohman noticed the children right off as well and tried to shoo the little ones away. Seeing the girl holding Valenia's hand as well, suddenly caused the dwarf to turn red with embarrassment. "I'm sorry, captain. Let me get this pest away from you." The man immediately picked the little girl up and began speaking earnestly to her before putting her down again with the others off to one side.

  "Your daughter?" Valenia asked with a smile still on her face.

  Clearing his throat, Dohman nodded blushing once again. "Yes, Lina, is a bundle of joy and trouble as well. I am so sorry that she came over to bother you."

  "She was no bother. Lina is very cute, and polite enough for her age, I believe. You should be proud."

  The dwarf bowed slightly and replied, "Thank you, captain. My wife and I are indeed proud of all our children." Noting that Lina had snuck around the soldiers to take Valenia's hand once again, he added, "Even this one, though she refuses to listen."

  Valenia's lilting laugh filled the air. It attracted several glances by the older dwarves wandering nearby even as Dante and those closest joined her laughter. "Don't be so hard on her, Dohman. She can stay if you can tolerate her."

  He nodded and led the soldiers onward after a disapproving look at his daughter. A moment later as they drew towards the center of the tents, a dwarf woman came calling in her language. The little girl looked over and with a quick smile to Valenia, ran away talking quickly to the woman who they figured to be her mother and thusly, Dohman's wife.

  The male dwarf just sighed and shook his head.

  They finally found a tent where Dohman entered and gestured for the others to follow him inside its enclosed canvas sides. Within, Dante and Valenia found a number of dwarves sitting or standing around a rectangular table. It was cleared now, though Dante guessed that it had other uses than as a conference table.