Demonkin (23 page)

“What now?” asked the elven thief. “Do we return to Despair?”

“Not me,” answered Kalina. “I would like to join with Garth at Tarashin. You will have to return to Despair alone.”

“Can I accompany you?” asked Morro. “I would like to see the land of the dwarves.”

Kalina stared at Morro for a moment before answering. “The elves and the dwarves have not been friendly in this land. Do you think that is wise?”

“We both must put the past behind us,” replied the elf. “As I understand it, the dwarves will be helping in the war against the Federation. Should we not try to get over our differences before the fighting starts?”

“That would be advisable,” frowned Kalina, “but are you the one to take that giant step?”

“I am not royalty,” conceded Morro, “but I am Dielderal. I have learned much from you Alceans about the true past of my people. I feel that I can engage the dwarves with an open mind. In fact, I believe that I can regain their trust, much as I have done with the unicorns.”

“You have done that with the unicorns,” smiled Kalina. “They have spoken to me about the Dielderal, and how they believe that your people have changed. You deserve a great deal of credit for that. Very well, let us both proceed to Tarashin then.”

* * * *

The unicorns landed on a narrow ledge and the pair dismounted. The unicorns took to the air again, leaving Kalina and Morro on the ledge near the waterfall. The two dwarven guards immediately approached and blocked the path.

“That is an elf, Lady Kalina,” one of the guards scowled.

“I am Morro, a Dielderal elf,” smiled the thief. “I have come to ask forgiveness for our past differences.”

The dwarf narrowed his gaze and stared at the elf suspiciously.

“I would never bring an enemy into Tarashin,” Kalina declared. “King Drakarik has already met with Prince Saratoma of the Dielderal. Are you now barring an ally from entry to Tarashin?”

The dwarf stepped forward and spoke. “We are not refusing entry. We are just surprised to see an elf arrive unbidden. One of us must gain permission for you to enter. Please wait here.”

Kalina nodded, and the dwarf disappeared into the cave. Everyone waited in an awkward silence until the runner reappeared.

“King Drakarik is pleased to accept a visitor from Elfwoods. I will have some men guide you to him.”

Morro smiled and nodded although he knew that his guides would be numerous and well armed. The dwarves did not disappoint him. A column of dwarven warriors surrounded the visitors and led them through the tunnels of Tarashin. Morro marveled at the highways burrowed through the mountain. He was amazed at the numerous intersections and the side tunnels that often led up or down or just sideways. Before the novelty had begun to wear off, they were deposited in a large round chamber. Garth Shado was present along with a half dozen dwarves. One of the dwarves wore a simple golden circlet upon his head. Morro instinctively bowed low to him.

“The elf has manners,” smiled King Drakarik. “Are you royal, Morro?”

“I am not,” grinned the elf. “I am but a simple thief.”

The dwarves in the room immediately tensed, but Garth started laughing. King Drakarik glanced at Garth, and he, too, began to laugh.

“A simple thief with a mind of wit,” chuckled the king. “Leave what belongs to the dwarves in Tarashin, Morro, and you will be welcome here.”

“Thank you, King Drakarik. I do not steal from friends, and I truly hope that your people and mine will become fast friends. Thank you for the welcome.”

Kalina glanced at the map on the table in the center of the room. Her eyes rose to Garth as she asked, “Is there any chance of reaching Camp Destiny?”

“More than I hoped,” Garth replied. “I was just going over the map with King Drakarik and his advisors. The dwarves have mapped every cave south of the Ramaldi Pass. They know of the hidden valley, and they can tunnel into it.”

“Within a week if I put everyone on it,” grinned the dwarven king. “Our current tunnels are extensive to the north. There is a bounty of gold and copper up there.”

“Can you do it without alerting the mages in the valley?” asked Kalina.

“Now that is a different story,” frowned the king. “Were it just human soldiers, I could tunnel right under them, but I do not know the capabilities of the mages. I understand that they have alarms on the peaks of the mountains. Is it possible that they have other alarms that we might trigger?”

“There is no way for us to know that,” answered Kalina, “but there is a limit to their power. If they spend their power on hundreds of wards, the mages will be of little use for anything else.”

“Perhaps you could work on the tunnel and stop just short of breaking through,” suggested Garth. “Surely their wards would be on the surface walls of the canyon, wouldn’t they?”

“That would be easiest.” Kalina nodded. “I think it would be safe to assume that.”

“Then let us plan to do that,” said Garth. “I have not yet developed a plan for what to do once we have an entrance into the valley. That will require a great deal of thought.”

“I will put my men on it right away,” promised King Drakarik. “Once we get close to the valley, I will return my men to working on the tunnel into Bloodwood.”

“Bloodwood?” questioned Morro.

“Aye.” The king nodded. “You didn’t expect the dwarves to come swarming down the mountainside, did ya, elf? When it comes time to attack the Federation, we will slip our armies into the Bloodwood unseen by the humans.”

“I guess I haven’t given it much thought,” admitted the thief.

“This has been a good meeting, King Drakarik,” stated Garth. “I think we will get out of your way and let you do what the dwarves do best.”

“Drinking?” chuckled the king. “Or singing?”

“I guess there are many things that dwarves excel at,” laughed Garth as he lifted his pack off the floor and pulled it onto his back.

As Garth and Kalina bowed to the king and prepared to depart, Morro remained upright. The king looked at him curiously.

“Might I ask to stay in Tarashin for a while?” asked the thief. “I promise not to get in the way, but I think my people should learn more about the ways of the dwarves. I think it will help us to better understand one another.”

Garth and the king exchanged puzzled glances. Garth shrugged, and the king eventually nodded.

“I would be pleased with your company for a while,” stated the king as he waved one of the other dwarves forward. “This is Karicon, Morro. He will be your guide during your stay. He will explain the rules of Tarashin, which you will be expected to obey. He will also answer whatever questions you might have.”

“Thank you,” Morro said with a low bow to the king. “I will also answer any questions about the Dielderal that any of the dwarves might have.”

Kalina raised an eyebrow as she watched Morro, but she didn’t say anything. As Garth personally thanked each of the king’s advisors for their help, Morro moved closer to Kalina.

“I would like a fairy of my own,” he whispered to Kalina. “Would that be possible?”

“What are you up to, Morro?” Kalina asked with suspicion.

“I would like to be kept informed with what is happening in Elfwoods and Despair,” answered the elven thief. “I also might learn a few things from the fairies. Didn’t you once say that we all had to work together? How better to do that than to immerse yourself in foreign cultures?”

Kalina laughed softly. “You are up to something, thief, but I trust you with my life. I will have a fairy sent to you. With no ships heading to Alcea, we have plenty of them available.”

* * * *

Grand General Kyrga donned an old, shabby, gray, hooded cloak and slipped out of the Imperial Palace. He moved stealthily across the manicured grounds of the palace, carefully avoiding the patrols. When he came upon a tall hedge, he followed it for a while and then suddenly stepped into it. He slid open a secret door that was concealed by hedges on both sides of the perimeter wall. Once through the door, he slid it closed and peered through the hedges at the city street. After making sure that he would not be observed, Kyrga stepped out of the hedge and hurried towards the Temple of Balmak. As he approached the rear of the temple, he slid a black and gold bracelet onto his wrist. He held his arm so the torchlight at the rear of the temple would illuminate the bracelet. The guards noticed it and knocked on the door. The door opened just as Kyrga reached it, and he stepped inside, unaware of the fairy that had followed him all the way from his quarters in the Imperial Palace. The door closed quickly, leaving the fairy outside. Kyrga stepped past the black-cloak who had opened the door and headed for K’san’s office. K’san was waiting for him.

“How do you always know when I am coming?” asked Kyrga.

“What brings you out this night?” K’san asked, ignoring the general’s question.

“It might be time to eliminate King Elengal,” stated Kyrga. “He had a private meeting with Emperor Jaar about your recent trip to Elfwoods.”

“So he lives,” frowned the tall, black priest. “That is most unfortunate.”

“Most unfortunate,” agreed Kyrga. “I suspect that Elengal knows of my involvement. If I know the emperor, he will appoint someone to investigate this matter, and it will be hidden from me.”

“Then you do indeed have a problem,” K’san responded, “but killing Elengal will no longer solve it. He has already done the worst he can do. How can my trip be traced to you?”

“I ordered Captain Kent to lead the mission,” explained the Grand General. “If they can find out who led the mission, it will lead back to me.”

“Does anyone other than Kent know of your involvement?”

“No’” Kyrga shook his head.

“Then eliminate the captain. The investigation will go no further.”

“I cannot just kill an officer in this city,” complained Kyrga. “Any dead officer will surely be investigated. That would just make things worse.”

“Must I think for you?” scowled the priest. “If you cannot kill him here in Despair then transfer him to some outpost and have him killed there.”

Kyrga’s eye twitched as he glared at the priest. He was about to open his mouth with an angry retort, but he remembered the power that K’san possessed. He inhaled deeply as he fought to control himself.

“That is a wise idea,” Kyrga finally replied meekly. “I shall handle it.”

“Do so,” K’san replied in a calmer tone. “Are you afraid that Jaar will replace you?”

“That is always a concern.” Kyrga nodded. “I am perfectly placed to bend the emperor to our will. If I am replaced it will be more than a personal setback for me. It will mark a delay in all of our plans.”

“Not for long,” K’san smirked. “If you are replaced, your replacement will suffer the same accidental fate that your predecessors faced. Do not fear for your position, Kyrga.”

“Your assurances are most welcome,” Kyrga said without inflection. “If that is all, I will leave you.”

“There is one thing that I want to ask you. I felt a presence in Despair last night. Did you notice anyone strange within the city walls?”

“A presence?” frowned Kyrga. “What kind of presence?”

“A magical presence. A presence of great power. Has anyone new been to see the emperor perhaps?”

“Not that I am aware of,” answered Kyrga. “I usually manage to keep track of everyone who meets with the emperor. Only the elven king has been admitted to see him recently. Surely, he is not the power you felt.”

“Certainly not,” scoffed the demonkin. “He is but a hair on the back of a dog.”

Tedi and Natia completed their quick tour of Valdo and headed back towards the coast. Tedi glanced at the reeducation center as they passed and then looked towards the docks. It was a fairly short distance to travel, but it would be nearly impossible to move a couple hundred elven children without someone seeing them. He frowned and sighed in frustration.

“Think about it later,” Natia said softly. “It is not going to happen tomorrow. What about staying at the Greystone Inn? It is close to both the elf center and the Royal Palace.”

“And probably the most expensive inn in the whole city,” scowled Tedi. “We do not have much gold on us. Let’s stay somewhere cheaper.”

“We have the diamond that Garth gave us,” Natia retorted. “We can sell it and have plenty of gold.”

“That is for emergencies.” Tedi shook his head. “Staying at the Greystone Inn is not an emergency. I must talk to Garth about getting you used to staying in fancy inns. He started it all.”

“That is the type of inn that a special agent is supposed to stay in,” insisted Natia. “If you won’t sell the diamond, I still have some DeCardia figurines. I will sell those.”

“They are supposed to be the merchandise we sell as special agents,” frowned Tedi. “Without them we won’t have anything at all to convince soldiers that we are merchants.”

“You worry too much,” pouted Natia. “I am staying at the Greystone Inn. You can stay wherever you want.”

Tedi sighed as Natia veered off the street towards the Greystone Inn. The inn was an old stone building and looked as if it had served as someone’s castle a long time ago. Tedi thought it still looked formidable as a defensive stronghold, but the moat no longer existed, and other buildings lined the street on both sides of it. He sighed again and followed Natia towards the stables. Natia was excited, and she ran into the inn before Tedi dismounted. The stableman grinned at Tedi as if he had seen the same reaction a hundred times before.

“Newlyweds, sir?”

“No,” scowled Tedi as he handed the reins to the man. “Make sure their feed is fresh. They had some pretty foul feed in Farmin on the way here.”

“Everything in Farmin is foul,” chuckled the stableman. “Our feed is the best. Don’t you worry none about that.”

Tedi saw the man’s hand out for a coin. He grumbled under his breath as he placed two copper coins in the man’s hand. The stableman did not seem thrilled with the gift. Tedi grumbled some more and strode briskly away. He entered the side door of the inn and saw Natia heading towards him.

“We have a suite on the top floor,” beamed the gypsy princess. “Come on. I will race you to the top.”