by Allan Joyal
Shaylin held her glowing stone over her head. Steve reached out and plucked it from her hand before holding it just above his own head. "You shouldn't have to carry it," he said. "Besides, you need to watch the puppies."
Gertrilla giggled. "The puppies are riding the second sled. They don't like the darkness very much."
"Watch them," I said. "Mertiln has said that the path is neutral territory, but I expect that leaving the path would be dangerous."
"I'll help," Corwar said as the sled just ahead of us began to move forward.
"Stay close to the sled," I said. "And listen for any orders given to us by the dwarves; they are in charge while we are underground."
We all stepped forward. Hencktor whimpered slightly as we headed into the deep darkness of the cave, but Lydia held his arm and kept him calm as we followed the lights of the two leading sleds and headed deeper into the cave.
Mertiln said nothing. The other dwarves had all left the circle of light cast by the stone Steve now held. Mertiln kept station just to the left of the sled we followed.
The beetles set a rather fast pace as we headed deeper into the caves. The smooth floor provided an excellent surface for them to walk as well as guiding them through the tunnels. I watched the beetle behind us and soon realized that it had little to no vision, but was reacting to signals provided by the dwarves.
The first day was exhausting. It was not the walking itself, as the surface was smooth and there were few slopes. However, the fast pace and the lack of any break meant we walked for hours as we passed deeper into the caves.
The tunnel was usually just a tunnel, rarely wider than about ten feet and with a ceiling that ranged between six and seven feet. Hencktor and Al both had to duck down quite often. Al seemed to take it in stride, but Hencktor would freeze at each low ceiling, only to try to dash through it once Lydia and Kariy had coaxed him to move again.
There were occasional side routes, seen as shadowy caves leading away from the path we followed. We stayed close to the sleds and walked as a group, conversation was in whispers.
Shaylin ran out of energy first. I offered to carry her on my back. Heather and Victoria helped lift her up as she put her arms around my neck. Natalie started to stumble a short time later. Esme tried to support her, but was clearly tiring rapidly as well. With others starting to slow, I called out to Mertiln. "Mertiln, we need to stop soon. Everyone is tiring."
Mertiln snorted. He did not immediately respond, but the beetles all slowed slightly. We kept moving. I was considering calling out a second time when the lead sled made a sharp turn to the right and revealed a small circular cavern. Two dwarves waited in the middle by a bubbling cauldron.
"Welcome!" one of the two shouted as we entered. "We heard you would be arriving shortly. We have food, ale and a place to rest."
Chapter 18: Deeper into Darkness
The sleds were guided along the outside of the chamber. From the light of Shaylin's stone, I could see that they followed a ring of smooth stone that was lower than the middle of the chamber. I glanced over at Mertiln. "Is the center still neutral ground?"
"Of course," Mertiln responded. "Anything inside a circle made by the cart paths is still neutral territory; we aren't the only ones to use carts on these trails. All of the parties found it best to have a way to bring the carts near any campsite."
I looked over at the sleds as we stepped into the raised center. The lead sled had been guided most of the way around the circle and the dwarves could be seen laying some glistening substance on the ground in front of the beetle. It moved its head over the offering.
"Will the beetles be comfortable?" Steve asked as we watched the beetle devour its meal. I noticed that none of the dwarves moved to remove the harness from the creature.
"We have some that have spent ten years or more harnessed to the same cart without a break," Mertiln said. "They don't seem to mind."
I nodded. The rest of the group had wandered over by the cauldron. They all smiled as they inhaled the scents of the stew the dwarves had prepared. I shook my head.
"Kariy," I called out, "shouldn't someone get the bowls and spoons so people can eat?"
Kariy screeched in surprise and then ran over to the second sled, which was resting on the far side of the circle. I could see dwarves now moving to feed the beetle that was pulling the third sled as Mertiln and I approached the cauldron. An enticing aroma wafted up from the cauldron.
"It smells good," Heather sighed, "and I'm hungry."
Mertiln gave off a huge laugh. "All we did was walk. You need to spend a day in the mines. You'll have a full understanding of being hungry after that."
I just shook my head as Kariy ran up to the group carrying a pack. She set it down and began pulling bowls from inside. The others eagerly accepted the bowls and lined up by the cauldron. I could see the dwarves forming their own line on the far side.
"Lydia, Steve," I called out, "I know we are hungry, but we should allow the dwarves to eat first. They have provided the meal and are helping us on our journey. We probably covered more distance today than we had in the past seven days marching through the snow."
The group backed away from the cauldron slowly. I felt a hand on my arm and turned to see Mertiln looking at me. "You are the guests, we could have waited," he told me.
"It wouldn't be right," I said. "Your people have done far more work today than we have. I should ask if you have any rules about sleeping arrangements. Also what about water and ... ."
Mertiln snorted. "A man who thinks of everything. You are an uncommon man, Ron. You can sleep anywhere, but I'd stay in the raised area. Water we can pull up from a well." He pointed to a strange rock formation near the entrance to the chamber. In the dim light I could faintly see the chain descending into a hole and vanishing from sight. "For the other, there is an alcove just outside the circle." He pointed to a spot almost opposite the well. Getting there would require passing between the first sled and the beetle pulling the second sled. I noticed that the beetle had pulled its legs in and was lying on the stone.
"Is it dead?" I asked.
"No, just sleeping," Mertiln replied. "It will stay like that until we wake it, or a large creature comes near."
Kariy brought a bowl over to me. She seemed very shy and tried to duck away. Mertiln grabbed her arm to halt her retreat. "Miss, I've heard some rumors that you were indentured in Tralvien unjustly. It was a dishonor to the clan that we allowed the men there to enslave you and steal your legacy. The clan owes you, and asks that you call on us whenever you are in need."
Kariy nodded, but then shook his hand off and dashed over by Steve. She hid behind my friend as the group lined up again for the stew.
The dwarves had each claimed a large bowl of stew and had been handed stone tankards filled with a foaming liquid. I joined the end of the line with Mertiln. He had a twinkle in his eye as my friends filled their bowls and began finding comfortable spots to sit on the floor of the cave. I was the last of our group to accept a full bowl of stew and one of the stone tankards.
Heather was waving and encouraging me to sit by her, so I made my way over to sit next to her on the floor. She had her legs crossed and was holding her bowl against her calves as I sat down. "Try the stew," she said with a smile.
I finished sitting down and then brought a spoonful of the stew to my mouth. It had a strangely tangy taste. The thick mixture seemed to have large chucks of meat mixed with slices of mushroom. It was a surprisingly hearty meal, with little grease. The stew was still hot from the cauldron, so I used some of the ale to wash down the mouthful.
The ale surprised me. It was far thicker than I pictured and tasted a bit like turpentine. Unlike the human beers we had been drinking when we visited a town, this concoction was strong alcohol. I looked over at Heather with a worried expression. "We're all going to get drunk."
Mertiln laughed. He sat down next to me and shook his head. "You humans need to learn to drink. Our ale can keep a man goin
g for days. It's a meal by itself."
"It's good," Heather said with a titter. "The frat boys at my university would have loved this."
I shook my head. "Love potion number nine it is not."
"What's that?" Mertiln and Heather both asked.
"It was a fictional magical drink on Earth," I said with a laugh. "I can't think of what bands sang the song, but it was popular long before Heather here was born. So I'm not too surprised she doesn't know of it."
Mertiln snorted. "Sing of drink. Sing of work. Sing about battles won and lost. Love is nothing to sing about."
Heather giggled. "But it's so fun to sing about love."
Mertiln shook his head and turned to me. "Tomorrow we'll reach our outpost. It's another long walk."
"I think some of us will want it to be over quickly. We like light and space," I replied. "But I'll make sure no one has problems and that we're ready to start early."
"I'm keeping you up all night," Heather said. She put her bowl of stew down and threw her arms around my neck. Her eyes were barely open as she pushed against me.
"Heather?" I asked as I pushed her away slowly. "Just how much of the dwarven ale have you drunk?"
"This is my first," she said, pointing at an empty stone tankard. "It's so good. You should drink more."
"Strong ale and I happen to get stuck with a lightweight," I muttered. "Steve, make sure no one has seconds on the dwarven ale," I shouted.
"Can do," he called back. "Lydia and Victoria already figured out how strong it is. How's Heather?"
"She pounded it," I said. "And she's definitely feeling the effects. I don't think that's normal."
"What was used to brew the ale?" Esme added. "This doesn't taste like it's from hops and barley like most American beers."
Mertiln looked at one of the two dwarves who were working near the cauldron. The dwarf looked over at us and then turned to face Esme. "Grain doesn't grow well in our lands. We trade for some, and have one variety that can survive by firelight, but we have to use a mold as the primary ingredient in the wort."
"Mold?" Natalie called out.
"It makes sense if the mold has enough starch in it," Al said. "One of my roommates had learned to brew beer from his father. He said you could brew anything that had large quantities of either sugar or starch if you prepared it properly. I didn't know molds produced sugars, but I guess they could."
I shook my head as Mertiln laughed and slapped me on the back. "You know more than most humans don't you? Some would refuse to drink our ale because of how we brew it."
"It's good. The only danger is that it's a bit strong for some of us," I said as Heather fell against me. I lifted her chin and found that the young lady has passed out after eating the rest of her bowl of stew. I laid her body down with a sigh and then collected her bowl, setting it on the ground next to me.
Mertiln just snorted and then got up to walk back over to the cauldron. I concentrated on finishing the bowl of stew. It was a hearty and filling meal and I was feeling a bit sleepy when I had emptied the bowl. Kariy was already collecting bowls to be cleaned as I leaned back for a moment to consider the day.
The others apparently were ready to call it a night as well. Jennifer and Gertrilla went over to the sleds and brought back the bedrolls. They handed them out as everyone found a spot on the floor of the cave and began to settle for the night. One of the dwarves went around and took down the lanterns from their stands on the sleds, leaving the fire and Shaylin's stone as the only points of light in the cave. With the darkness and silence of the cavern as the background for the end of the day, we lay down to sleep.
The next morning I awoke to a loud clanging sound. I rolled over and sat up. One of the dwarves was hitting the cauldron with a hammer, making it ring like a gong. During the night Shaylin had covered her stone, so the only light was that of the fire, but I could hear others stirring in the darkness.
Heather mumbled something and then grabbed at my shirt, trying to pull me back down. I grabbed one of her hands and raised it to my lips. A teasing kiss later and I was reaching down to pull Heather to a sitting position. "Up!" I hissed. "Breakfast is ready and we need to be on our way soon."
Heather's body sat up, but the instant I let go of her hand, her head slumped to the side and she started to lie back down. I grabbed her shoulders and used the back of my hand to pat at her face several times. At first her head just moved slightly, but after more than a dozen taps, her eyelids flittered and her hands rose to grab my arm.
"Stop," she ordered sleepily.
"Rise up and get breakfast," I said. "We are leaving shortly."
"Don't want to wake up," Heather replied sleepily. "It's still night outside."
"We're in a cave, my beautiful wife," I said. "Now get up or I'll throw you in front of the beetles and let them walk all over you."
"They don't climb," Heather said. "They'd just stop when they ran into me."
Mertiln guffawed. "She got you there."
Around me, the rest of the group was rousing. The dwarf beating on the cauldron stopped and picked up a ladle. "Breakfast is ready," he called out.
Heather slumbered on. I dragged her from the bedroll and threw her over my back in a fireman's carry. She felt surprisingly light as I toted her over to by the well and laid her down on the path. She shivered and mumbled something, but failed to wake as I grabbed the chain and began to pull it upward. Below, I could hear a faint splash.
The chain was shorter than I expected and ended at a metal bucket. The bucket was filled with clear water. I placed a hand in the water and found that it was extremely cold. Hoisting the bucket, I turned to face Heather, who slumbered on where I had placed her.
Sound in the camp stopped. I waited one last moment and then thrust the bucket forward, sending a wave of water to drench my sleeping girlfriend.
The screech of outrage that followed the splash echoed in the small chamber. I returned the bucket to the well, and allowed it to drop into the water. As it splashed, I thought that it might be unwise to leave it and reached for the chain.
"Leave it," Mertiln called out over Heather's increasingly vulgar complaints about being wet. "It won't come to any harm if it's left in the water."
I nodded and started to walk back to the cauldron. Heather flicked some water at me as I passed. "Why did you do that, you bastard?" she shrieked.
"Breakfast is served," I said calmly. "Now, I'll be putting the bedroll away and getting breakfast. We were told we would have another long day of hiking ahead of us and could not let you sleep forever."
Heather glared at me as I walked over to the bedroll and knelt down to start folding it up. She said nothing, but shook some more water out of her hair and clothing before stomping over to the fire.
I finished my task of folding the bedroll and picked it up to carry to the sleds. The others were pursuing the same task or grabbing a bowl of stew. I noticed that the dwarves were lighting lanterns and hanging them from the sleds again. This time I was closer and able to take a long look at one of the lanterns. I was surprised to notice that the glass used to focus the light was heavily tinted. One of the dwarves noticed my gaze and winked. "Keep light from ruining sight," he said gruffly.
I put the bedroll back and turned to look at the camp. I realized that the fire burning under the cauldron was surrounded by the same tinted glass. The dwarves obviously used the glass to make sure that the light would not disturb their ability to see in darkness. I had to admire their simple but effective solution to the problem.
Kariy came over to me carrying a bowl of steaming hot stew. "Heather is upset," she told me.
I shrugged. "It was the fastest way to wake her. I didn't have the luxury of allowing her hours to wake. She'll forgive me."
"If she doesn't, I won't be yours," Kariy said.
I laughed and put my spoon into the bowl long enough to give Kariy a one armed hug. "I would never ask that of you, sister of my heart. You need to step out confidently and cla
im a man on your own."
"No one here interests me," Kariy said sadly. "Verval is a bit too ... ."
I nodded. "Hopefully he'll change. His younger brother seems nice, but I think Shaylin and Gertrilla have captivated him already."
Kariy nodded. "They all shared a bedroll with the puppies."
"Did you ask for a recipe on the stew?" I asked to change the subject. "This is actually quite good."
Kariy smiled at me in the dim light. "I won't tell you what meat they used, but they said any meat would work. The mushrooms are grown in caves, but they said two of the varieties dry well for transport. I'm going to ask for some when we are at the outpost, or at the trading post in Purahomp."
I nodded and quickly ate the stew. Kariy smiled and finished off her own bowl of stew as we leaned against the sled and watched the others prepare to leave the campsite.
The dwarves were packing away the cauldron in an alcove I had not seen before. I handed the empty bowl to Kariy and watched as three dwarves carried the cauldron, tripod and glass fire enclosure into a stone alcove. When they left the alcove, one turned to the rock. He held his arms out parallel to the floor. Then he turned his palms inward and slowly brought his hands together. The entrance to the alcove flowed like a pair of sliding doors, coming together and concealing the cauldron from us.
"Neat trick," Lydia said as she threw a bedroll onto the sled. "Everyone is ready to go. And Victoria has found some dried meat we can carry in case people get hungry. I get a feeling we won't be stopping for many breaks."
I nodded. "The dwarves do seem to be tireless. At least everyone appears to be in great shape."
"Verval is a bit sore," Esme said. "Corwar is worse. Gertrilla was asking me about how to perform a leg massage last night. I'll probably have to look at both of them when we arrive at the outpost."
"I want to see that," Lydia said. "To be the first human from Earth to see a dwarven citadel."
Mertiln laughed. "It's no citadel. Just a stone fortress protecting some valuable mines we have in this part of the world. Now if you are all ready, we should get moving."