Adventurers Wanted, Book 4: Sands of Nezza (10 page)

No. This is Magnus’s magic,
Alex’s O’Gash said.
It has slowed your mind and magnified your fear.

I’m not afraid of rats. I just don’t like them,
said the strong voice in Alex’s mind.
The rats won’t do anything if I move forward. They are too busy with their trash pile to care.

Something terrible will happen if I go in there!
the weak voice shrieked.

Alex tried to move forward, but it was almost impossible. His right foot slid a few inches across the ground and stopped. His left leg didn’t move at all. Magic or not, the fear in his brain was holding him in place.

I feel happy, I feel sad, I feel angry, I feel afraid. Fear is just another feeling. It can only hurt me if I let it,
Alex’s strong voice reasoned.

It is real,
the weak voice whined.
I . . . I can’t . . .

Alex dragged his left foot across the step, and he moved forward. A second effort pulled his right foot to the floor of the room. He closed his eyes, not out of fear but in concentration. He had to move forward in order to break the spell of fear that held him back. Again and again his feet shuffled forward, and with each painfully slow step, the weak voice at the bottom of his brain howled for him to run.

After what seemed like forever, Alex opened his eyes and found that he was only a few steps away from the far side of the room. The tunnel he had been following was in front of him, and he almost jumped into it. He paused to look back into the room. The rats were still swarming the trash pile, unconcerned with Alex and the battle he had just won.

Alex followed the tunnel, changing directions and climbing one last steep section using his hands and feet. He was breathing hard and sweating, but he’d found what he was looking for. In front of him the tunnel wall dropped down, leaving a much smaller opening. Pale light shined through the opening, and he could smell fresh air. He put out his weir light and stood still for a moment, catching his breath. When he felt like he could move quietly, Alex dropped to his knees and crawled through the opening.

Alex looked up at the night sky. Only ten or twelve feet above him was an iron grate that covered the stone box he’d crawled into. With no time to waste, Alex became a swallow, fluttering up and through the iron bars.

Landing, he found himself in what looked like a forgotten garden. Roses grew across stone paths and clung to small stone statues. A quick glance told him that he was in the center of some large building. He flew up into the open air and got a better look at the city around him.

To Alex’s surprise, he was still on the island in the middle of the river. The building he’d just left looked like it might have been a palace once, but it was shabby and run-down now. The entrance to the dungeon, and the tower where he hoped to find the magic bags of the adventurers, was close by. He flew to the top level of the tower only to find that the windows on the top level had all been bricked shut, but that seemed like a small problem now that he was out of the dungeon.

Dropping down one level, Alex found a barred window that he could slip through. He landed in a dusty storage room full of books and scrolls and returned to his own form once more.

The door was unlocked, and Alex pulled it open just far enough so he could see the hallway outside. There were no sounds, and the dimly lit hall appeared to be empty. Alex pulled the door shut behind him and moved toward the near end of the hall, looking for a stairway that would lead him to Magnus’s rooms.

At first Alex moved with caution, thinking that Magnus would have guards posted. Finding no one to block his way, though, he realized that all the guards must be in the dungeons below, searching for him. How long had it been since the search had started? The moon had been setting in the west, so it had to be four or five hours since he’d first entered the dungeons. How long would it take to search the entire dungeon?

It doesn’t matter. I need to hurry,
Alex thought.

Finding the stairs he was looking for, Alex started to climb as quietly as he could. He didn’t know for certain that Magnus would be in the dungeon; that was only a guess. He let his thoughts and magic move outward, searching for any signs of magic or any kind of trap that Magnus might have left on the stairway. There was nothing, and there was no magic around the locked door at the top of the stairway either.

With a twist of his hand and a little magic, Alex opened the door to Magnus’s private rooms. Everything was dark except for a strange ball of pale green light to Alex’s left. Closing and locking the door, Alex moved toward the ball of light. At the center of the ball was an iron lockbox sitting on a polished table.

The ball of light completely enclosed the box, and bending down, Alex could see the bottom of the ball extend underneath the table. The spell was obviously meant to keep the box safe. He needed to get the box out of the ball of light, but breaking the spell would alert Magnus to Alex’s whereabouts, and that would mean trouble.

Leaning his staff against the wall, Alex magically lit several candles around the room. He put his hands under the edge of the table and lifted. The table and the box together were heavier than he thought they would be. He checked his grip and lifted the table a little higher. The ball of green light stayed where it was, and so did the lockbox. Grunting with the effort, Alex lifted the table even higher. The box scraped on the table and moved a few inches, but the ball of light didn’t move at all.

Alex took a deep breath and jerked the heavy table even higher. The box suddenly slipped, scraping the tabletop and crashing to the floor. Alex almost dropped the table, his eyes darting to the door as his heart raced with fear.

Magnus’s spell remained where it was, and there were no sounds of anyone racing up the stairs to see what all the noise was about. Alex took a few deep breaths and reached for his magic bag. He would take the box with him and open it when he was someplace safer.

Having placed the lockbox safe inside his magic bag, Alex was about to put out the candles when something else caught his eye. Next to the table was a large desk, and sitting on that desk was a dark crystal ball that Alex recognized as a scrying orb. He knew they were like an oracle’s crystal, only not as powerful or as clear to see things in. Next to the orb was a folded letter. Alex wondered who would be sending letters to Magnus.

Alex moved behind the desk and picked up the letter. Unfolding the page, he held it up so he could read it in the candlelight.

Magnus,

We have been informed that your foolish lord has imprisoned a company of adventurers. You are to dispose of these adventurers as quickly as possible. You are to remove all trace of them and to dispose of or transfer any soldier who knows that they have been brought to Karmus.

     
In the name of the Brotherhood,

     
Gaylan

Alex read the letter twice. The fact that it was signed “In the name of the Brotherhood” made a chill run down his spine. This was not one person giving an order to execute Skeld and his friends, but a person giving orders for a larger group of people—the Brotherhood.

Here, in Alex’s hand, was the first real proof that the Gezbeth, or “the Brotherhood” as they called themselves, existed. His emotions rose and then fell just as fast. He could prove that the Gezbeth was a real threat, but to whom? What was Magnus doing for them here in Nezza? Why did the Brotherhood care about a handful of adventurers?

“I can puzzle this out later,” Alex said to himself, slipping the letter into his pocket. He would have to tell Whalen about this as soon as possible

Alex held out his magic bag and moved the scrying orb from the desktop to his own treasure room. It was a useful tool to have, and he didn’t want to leave it here for Magnus to use. With a wave of his hand, the candles all went out. He moved back to the door guided by the green glow of Magnus’s spell, but before he could leave the room, he heard the sound of heavy boots rushing up the stairs.

Moving to stand so he would be behind the door when it opened, Alex waited. The boots stopped, and Alex heard a scraping sound as a key turned in the lock. The door swung open, and Alex saw a guard holding a torch. The guard was alone, but Alex didn’t wait to find out why he was there. With all his strength, he kicked the door shut, slamming it into the guard’s face.

There was a lot of noise from beyond the door as the guard tumbled down the stairs. Alex pulled the door open and hurried after his enemy. He found the man at the bottom of the steps, unconscious and bleeding from a broken nose but alive. He left the guard where he’d landed and hurried toward the nearest door. It was time to get out of Karmus, and any window he could squeeze through as a bird would be good enough.

The door was locked, but Alex’s magic had it open in a flash. He spun into the room and had the door shut and locked again before realizing he was not alone. A pale-faced young man jumped to his feet as soon as Alex entered. He was dirty, his clothes were worn, and it looked like he hadn’t had a good meal for weeks.

“Who are you?” the prisoner questioned, his voice shaking slightly. “What do you want with me?”

“Who are you? And why are you being held here?” Alex asked in reply.

“I am Rallian, prince of Karmus. I’ll ask again, who are you and what do you want with me?”

“I am Alexander Taylor, adventurer and wizard. I wasn’t looking for you, but now that I’ve found you, I think you should come with me.”

“I’ve heard tales of adventurers and wizards, and they all seem too big to be believed. If you’re trying to escape the tower, don’t bother. There are too many of the black guards for you to slip past them all. You might as well go back to the cell you were in.”

“I don’t plan on slipping past the black guards,” Alex said. “I am leaving this tower and the city of Karmus. If you would like to have your freedom once more, you are welcome to join me. If you’d prefer to stay here under Magnus’s care . . .”

“If there is any chance of freedom, then I’m with you.”

“Then we should be on our way,” said Alex.

Alex moved toward the window at the same time that Rallian moved toward the door. The moon had gone down, and the sun would be rising in less than an hour. It had been a long night for Alex, but there was no time to rest.

“This way, I think,” said Alex, pointing at the window.

“It’s more than fifty feet to the roof of the dungeon below,” said Rallian. “Unless you have a great deal of rope hidden on your person or can sprout feathers and fly away, I think the stairs are a safer bet.”

“Sprouting feathers and flying away is exactly what we are going to do. Now, quickly, we must leave this place.”

“You’re a madman if you believe you can fly,” said Rallian, taking a step back from Alex.

“Not mad,” said Alex, waving his staff in Rallian’s direction. “A wizard, as I said.”

Rallian’s reply was the croak of a raven. Before the prince could make another sound, Alex changed himself into a raven as well and flew to the bars in the window. He squeezed himself through, then, turning to look at the prince, he used more magic. The spell was like a magical rope that would bind them together, forcing the prince to stay close and follow where Alex led.

“Come fly with me,” said Alex in his raven’s voice. “The hour of your freedom has arrived.”

Unsure of his wings and confused by his sudden transformation, Rallian managed to fly up to the window and squeeze through the bars as well. He teetered on the window ledge.

“Spread your wings,” said Alex. “You’ll get the hang of it.”

Alex spread his own wings and took flight. He circled and turned back toward the tower, waiting for Rallian to follow. Rallian hesitated, squawked once, and finally spread his wings and glided away from the window. Alex worried that Rallian would either simply glide until he ran into a building or fell to the ground. After a few seconds, however, Rallian flapped his wings out of instinct. Slowly the prince climbed into the dark sky to fly at Alex’s side.

“Into the west we go, young prince, and the future of Nezza goes with us,” said Alex.

He was surprised by his own words. He hadn’t actually planned to go west, and he had no idea what the future of Nezza might be. What he did know troubled him. His quest to rescue Skeld and his company from the dungeons of Karmus had become something new. He wasn’t sure why things had changed, but everything was different now. Perhaps it was finding Magnus, a dark wizard, in Nezza. Maybe it was the note from the Brotherhood that he’d found. Whatever the reason, Alex was now on a bigger quest, and the fate of all of Nezza hung in the balance.

Chapter Seven

Many Meetings

Alex might have enjoyed his flight into the west if he hadn’t had so many things to be worried about. This new quest had chosen him, and he was sure that Magnus would fight to the death to win. Even if he didn’t have Magnus and the Brotherhood to think about, there was Skeld and his companions. They hadn’t looked good when he’d found them, and they would need time to regain their strength. He needed to find a safe place for them. Once they were well enough to travel, what would they do?