He began softening the stone and scooping it out with both hands. He purposefully made this tunnel smaller, so he wouldn’t have to move so much rock. It only needed to be big enough for him to crawl through anyway. The tunnel progressed steadily. Eventually he broke through into the cavern, crawled out of the tunnel and stood up. What he saw surprised him.
The cavern was lit by a soft blue, shimmering glow. The glow appeared to come from the stone itself. By its light he could see that this was no raw cavern formed by natural forces. The floor, walls and ceiling were solid stone and smooth as glass. But what drew his attention were the hundreds of stone creations that jutted up from the floor or hung down from the ceiling. Some were as small and delicate as spider webs, others were huge. A few resembled living creatures—Fen saw one that looked very much like a panther, another that looked like a bird in flight—but most were simply fantastic shapes of incredible complexity. They were eerie, otherworldly in their beauty. As he watched, the light in the cavern shifted gradually from blue to green, growing stronger in some areas and weaker in others as it did so. The changed light revealed creations that had been hidden before, while casting others into shadow.
It was something no human hands could have done. Which meant that it had to have been done by a Shaper. It was clearly very old. Water had worn away some of the creations. Others had fallen from the ceiling and lay shattered on the floor. Despite the hurry he was in, Fen could not help but feel awe at what he saw. How many other amazing creations had the Shapers left behind, hidden away from the world?
He touched a section of wall that was glowing, wondering what the source of the glow was. The light seemed to emanate from within its depths. He could sense Stone power, a tiny flicker of it, in motion within the stone. The Shaper who made this place must have triggered some kind of ongoing reaction which caused the light.
But those mysteries would have to wait for another time. Fen started across the cavern, picking his way through the chunks and slabs of stone that littered the floor. He hadn’t gone far when he heard a voice from behind him.
“Don’t do it. It’s a trap.”
Fen spun and saw the scarred face of Lowellin.
He reacted instantly, without thinking. With his power he lifted two slabs of stone from the floor and hurled them at Lowellin.
He felt Lowellin exert his will—
Both stones crumbled to dust in mid-air.
“We really need to talk,” Lowellin said.
“No, we don’t,” Fen said, reaching into the stone all around him for more power, his next attack already formulating.
An irritated look crossed Lowellin’s face. “I didn’t come here to fight you. If you’d just listen.”
Fen ripped open a sudden chasm beneath Lowellin’s feet, but Lowellin skipped nimbly aside. “I can see you’re going to be difficult.” He raised a hand.
The stone around Fen went liquid and flowed upward suddenly, forming into a giant hand and then returning to its solid state. Fen was gripped tightly in a stone fist.
“That’s better. Now we can talk,” Lowellin said, moving toward Fen.
“You have nothing to say that I want to hear,” Fen replied. He flexed his power, and the stone hand shattered, fragments flying in every direction.
Fen pulled stone from the wall, shaping it quickly into a massive, crude stone hammer and swinging it at Lowellin’s head.
But just as quickly Lowellin drew stone from the floor and formed it into a giant shield, intercepting the attack. Hammer and shield shattered.
“I don’t want to hurt you,” Lowellin said. “But I will if you make me.”
Lowellin stretched his arms wide, then swept his hands forward. Stone flowed up from the floor, forming into two stone axes, each larger than a man. They hurtled end over end at Fen.
Instinctively, Fen scooped stone from the floor and shaped it into a huge, two-handed sword. It must have been tremendously heavy, but it felt no heavier than a standard sword in his hands. He poured extra power into it, and its edges glowed red. He caught the closest axe on the edge of his blade, slapping it aside. It flew past him harmlessly. He spun and struck the next axe squarely, shattering it into pieces.
He ran at Lowellin, the sword drawn back for his next attack.
Lowellin made a motion with his hand. A whole section of the floor beneath Fen tilted upwards at a steep angle suddenly. Fen lost his balance and slid down the slab, going to one knee and having to put a hand down when he struck the floor.
The slab tilted until it was vertical, then tipped over on top of him. But Fen brought his stone sword around in a whistling arc. The sword cut cleanly through the slab and the pieces fell harmlessly around him.
“You’ve come a long way, I’ll give you that,” Lowellin said. “But you are only a child when it comes to power. You are no match for me.”
“We’ll see about that,” Fen said grimly. He fed more power into the stone sword and charged Lowellin again. Red and orange flames flickered up and down the blade.
Nearing Lowellin, he leapt up into the air and brought the sword over and down in a wicked overhand blow.
Lowellin raised his hands and crossed his forearms. The stone sword struck his arms—
And snapped in half.
Fen saw an opening and kicked him in the knee, then grunted in pain. It felt like kicking a stone wall.
“I am as old as this world,” Lowellin said. “You cannot hurt me.”
He stomped his foot. The floor underneath Fen bucked hard, and he fell. Before he could rise, Lowellin gripped his shoulder and lifted him into the air, shaking him like a misbehaving puppy.
Fen fought to get free, but he was helpless. The power in Lowellin’s grip went beyond flesh and blood. He flexed his power, thinking to break Lowellin’s grip the same way he’d broken the stone hand.
“That won’t work,” Lowellin said. “Are you ready to talk now?”
Fen realized he would have to change tactics, do something Lowellin wasn’t expecting. He remembered the sword he’d manifested while still in the prison. With it he’d managed to break through the barrier that Ilsith had erected inside him. If he could call on that power again now…
Fen reached past the stone and into the raw Stone power that lurked within it. It was there, all around him, quiescent, waiting. He drew it into himself, focusing it.
A flaming crimson sword of raw Stone power sprang into life in his hand. He swung hard at Lowellin, putting everything he had into the blow.
There was a muffled thump as the sword struck Lowellin’s midsection. Lowellin gave a cry of pain and lost his hold on Fen, who quickly followed up his advantage, raining blows down on him as fast as he could.
Lowellin yelled and a wave of power exploded from him, radiating in all directions. Fen was lifted into the air and thrown backwards. He landed hard and was slow getting back to his feet, noticing as he did so that he’d lost the sword.
Lowellin’s face had gone dark with fury. “You want to play rough then? Good. Time to show you what I can really do.” He raised his arms. The whole cavern began to shake.
Fen reached out and drew in more Stone power, taking in far more than he had the first time. Flames flickered around his torso and down his arms as he braced himself for Lowellin’s attack.
“Wait!” someone yelled. “Stop!”
Fen glanced over and saw a figure emerging from the tunnel he’d made. It was Cowley. “Stand down, Fen!” Cowley yelled.
Fen hesitated. The power rippled through him, clamoring for release. He couldn’t hold it much longer. “You shouldn’t be here, Cowley,” he said. “You’re going to get hurt.”
There was movement behind Cowley, and the other squad members began to emerge. Cowley held up his hands and walked between Fen and Lowellin, keeping his gaze on Fen the whole time.
“You need to listen to him,” Cowley said. “He has something to say that you need to hear.”
“Yeah, we didn’t bring him all this w
ay just to have you kill him,” Noah said.
“You told him where to find me?” Fen said, stunned. None of this was making any sense. “Why?”
“Because I set them free,” Lowellin said. He lowered his arms. The shaking stopped.
“It’s a trick,” Fen said through gritted teeth. “Move, Cowley. I can’t control this power much longer.”
“Probably it is a trick,” Cowley admitted. “But you should listen to him anyway.”
Fen stared at him a moment longer, trying to understand what was going on. Had Lowellin threatened his friend with something, forcing him to say what he did? But Cowley did not look to be under duress, though he was clearly injured and in pain. One eye was swollen almost shut. There was dried blood on his face. All of them were battered.
Fen made a sudden decision and released the power into the ground. There was a rumbling sound, and the cavern shook a little. Pebbles and dust cascaded from the ceiling.
“What’s going on?” Fen asked Cowley.
“The time—” Lowellin began, but Fen cut him off.
“I didn’t ask you. I asked him.”
Lowellin’s eyes flashed, and he looked like he was about to say something angrily, but with an effort he mastered himself and gestured to Cowley to speak.
Quickly Cowley told Fen what had happened, about the offer Lowellin had made.
“And you trust him?” Fen said in disbelief.
“Of course not,” Strout said. “None of us are that stupid.”
“He did stop the torture,” Lukas said. “Personally, I have to say that counts for a lot.” He rubbed one of his arms gingerly and winced.
“I thought it was a bad idea all along,” Noah said, “but I got outvoted.”
“He kidnapped Ravin and used her to make me get him the key fragment,” Fen said to Cowley. “He’s the reason the Ichthalids are here. He’s been working for them for years. He’s a manipulator who will do anything to get what he wants. For all we know, he ordered you tortured so he could step in and be the one who set you free. He’s doing this for himself. Once he gets what he wants, he’ll turn on us.”
“I know,” Cowley said. “We all know that. We talked about it. But I still think you should listen to him.”
“Nothing good can come from allying with him.”
“Maybe not. But it’s not like we have a lot of choices,” Cowley pointed out.
“Why are you doing this? What game are you playing?” Fen said, turning on Lowellin.
“You want to know why I’m doing this? This is why.” Lowellin tore open his shirt. Buttons flew off and rolled on the floor. There was no musculature like a human would have. His torso was strangely flat, unlined. He looked as if he had been carved from stone. Fen saw something move under the skin, low down on Lowellin’s abdomen. The skin bulged, the bulge moving upward.
“Yeah, you showed me those already. Some things from the Abyss that you made serve you. That doesn’t tell me anything.”
“Only because you are missing one key fact. The ingerlings do not serve me. They are the reason I serve S’nash. He uses them to control me. If I do not do as he says, I will suffer the same fate as my late brethren. But if I do as he says, once he has freed his queen, he will remove them from me. Let me tell you something else. You think you know what pain is? You don’t. You’ve never experienced pain.” He drew the pieces of his shirt together.
“So you lied about that too.”
Lowellin shrugged. “You expect me to go around telling people that I’m nothing more than a servant? It’s not something to be proud of. Besides, when I told you that, I was trying to get you to retrieve the key fragment for me. I said what I thought would make you do what I wanted.”
“That’s the same thing you’re doing right now.”
“But this time it’s the truth.”
“I don’t think you know what that word means.”
A hard glint came into Lowellin’s eyes. “Don’t push me too far, boy. I can put up with a great deal, but I have my limits, and I do not like being spoken to that way by a mere human.”
“As you yourself said the first time we met, I am no mere human,” Fen said. “Not anymore. Thanks to you.”
“True. And I am impressed by what you did during our little battle. You’ve come quite far. Now, about our alliance.”
“There is no alliance. I don’t know that I believe a single word you say.”
“Overall, not a bad decision on your part. I am not all that trustworthy. But you can believe this.” He tapped his chest. “I want these things out of me. I’ll do anything I can to be rid of them.”
Fen thought about this. Lowellin seemed sincere, but that didn’t mean much. Every instinct he had told him not to believe anything the Shaper said. He could not be trusted. But at the same time, it was true what Cowley said. They didn’t have a lot of options.
“Let’s say I agree to this. What would we do first? How do you plan to attack them?”
“You’re jumping ahead here, Fen. We’re not going to attack them. Not unless we have to. Which I hope we don’t. No, what we’re going to do is let them free their queen and leave our world.”
“You want me to stand by and do nothing while they get the key? That will never happen. I’ll die before I let them get that last piece of the key.”
Lowellin sighed and rubbed his forehead. “I knew you would say that. Noble Fen and his righteousness. It’s very tedious, you know, this insistence you have on always doing the right thing.”
“That will never change. I won’t stand by and do nothing while people suffer.”
Then Lowellin surprised him. “Why?” he asked.
Fen frowned. “Why what?”
“Why is it so important to you that they don’t get the key?”
“Because then they’ll…they’ll open the Abyss. They’ll release their queen. And then…”
“And then what? You don’t have all the information here, Fen. You don’t know much of anything, really. Let’s go over a few things. A long, long time ago, a race of beings you know as the masters imprisoned the Ichthalids and their queen in the Abyss. The key to that prison was left here on this world, in pieces, and the masters also left the Shapers here to defend it, in case the Ichthalids should start to free themselves. Do you agree with me so far?”
“Mostly.”
“Do you know anything about why? As in, why did the masters go to all that trouble to lock up the Ichthalids and their queen?”
“No.”
“Neither do I. Nor is it important. The war between the masters and Ichthalids happened ages ago. It was over long before the first human opened its eyes. Who knows why the masters imprisoned the Ichthalids? Who cares? Whatever these two races fought over is long gone. As far as we know, the masters have all died out. So, why should we care if the Ichthalids get out of their prison and go on their way?”
“Because they’re evil.”
“Are you sure of that?”
“I am. Look at the suffering they have caused, the people who have died, all so that they could break free.”
“Is that really evil? Let me ask you this. If your people were locked away in the Abyss, wouldn’t you do the same things in order to free them?”
That struck Fen. He’d never thought of it that way. “No,” he said after a moment. “I wouldn’t. I won’t do evil in order to stop evil.”
“No, of course not. The tedious noble thing again.”
“What makes you so sure they will leave once their queen is free anyway?”
“Because they told me they would. They’re going to leave and let me rule this world. After first removing my little, toothy friends.”
“Why would you believe them?”
“The ingerlings, remember? I don’t have a lot of choice. But there is something else. They hate this world. They truly do. They want only to return to their world, some place whose name I can’t pronounce. That part I believe. It’s the part about them removing the
ingerlings first that I’m not so sure of. That’s why I want to ally with you. You’re the card hidden up my sleeve.”
Fen looked at the others in his squad.
“Kings start the wars, but we soldiers are the ones who end up doing most of the dying,” Strout said.
Noah gave him a squinty look. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I’m saying this key isn’t our fight,” Strout said. “Let them free their queen and go.”
“What about the rest of you?” Fen asked.
“I’ll follow your lead,” Lukas said. “You know that.” Gage and the brothers both nodded at his words.
“We can’t let them march into our world and get away with it,” Noah said. “I say we fight.”
“Cowley?”
“What choice do we have? I mean, we can’t even hurt them. Maybe they really will go.”
Fen turned back to Lowellin. “But if they decide not to leave, then we attack them?”
Lowellin smiled. “Now you’re getting it. Between us I believe we could defeat them.”
“I don’t trust you.”
“You keep saying that. And I keep saying that you shouldn’t trust me. Say something new.”
“How can I ally with someone I can’t trust?”
“You don’t know much about alliances, do you? Kings form alliances all the time without trusting each other. They do it knowing that their ally will turn on them the moment it’s in his best interest to do so. But usually that comes after their mutual enemy is defeated.”
“Unless one ally betrays the other sooner.”
“You still think this is all some elaborate trap, don’t you? Yet there is no need for such a trap. I easily followed you down here. I could just as easily have brought the Ichthalids with me. You’d be dead right now, and I wouldn’t still be having this argument with you. An argument that I must say is becoming very irritating.”
“He has a point,” Strout said.
“Still…” Fen said.
“You want further proof of my good intentions? The girl you value so highly. I know that she is hiding out in Shantytown. Yet I have not turned her over to the Ichthalids.”
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