Forge of the Mindslayers botf-2

by Tim Waggoner

  Asenka could feel the difference at once. The air around them was noticeably warmer, as was the deck beneath their feet.

  "That was most impressive," Asenka said, and she meant it. "Thank you, but it was nothing. A mere trifle." Despite Tresslar's words, it was clear her praise pleased him.

  Since he seemed in a better mood now, Asenka decided to keep talking. "Earlier, I noticed you were holding your wand out before you almost as if it were a fishing rod."

  Tresslar chuckled. "I suppose I was fishing, after a fashion. The golden dragonhead has the ability to absorb and store magical energy. I can then release this energy at a later time and use it for whatever task I wish. Though it's easier to simply cast the same sort of spell that was originally absorbed. Using heat energy to create heat, as opposed to trying to use it to try and create wind, like the elemental bound in the Zephyr's containment ring. That sort of thing."

  Asenka wasn't exactly sure what Tresslar was talking about, but she nodded anyway. "So you were… what? Fishing for magic?"

  Tresslar grinned. "Precisely. While the dragonhead needs to be in direct contact with an enchanted object to draw its full energy, it can absorb a certain amount of background magic. Many sea creatures possess mystic power to varying degrees, and the dragonwand is capable of taking in the magical residue they leave behind. It's not a great deal of energy, mind you, but I learned a long time ago that it doesn't pay to let the wand's energy level dip too low."

  A faraway look crept into Tresslar's gaze, and Asenka wondered what the elderly artificer was recalling.

  The dragonhead on the end of the wand was a beautiful piece of workmanship, with red gems for eyes and teeth made of crystal. "It's a most remarkable device," Asenka said. "I've never seen an artificer carry anything quite like it before."

  Tresslar snapped back to the present. "And no wonder. I'm the only one in the Principalities-or Khorvaire, for that matter-who has anything like it." He looked down at the dragonwand, turning it this way and that, as if examining it for the first time. "It may well be the only object of its kind in all of Eberron." He spoke this last bit softly, as if talking to himself.

  "I sense there's a story for the telling here."

  Tresslar looked up at her, as if startled. "Well… yes, but it's not one I've ever told before." He glanced toward the bow where Diran still stood motionless, staring out at the slate-gray waters of the Lhazaar. "Not to anyone."

  "A story might help pass the time until we return to Perhata."

  Tresslar looked at her a long moment before finally saying, "Yes. I suppose it would."

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  I was twenty-four, and I'd been sailing on the Seastar with Erdis Cai for almost two years."

  Asenka blinked in surprise, unsure she'd heard correctly. "You mean Erdis Cai, the explorer?"

  Tresslar gave her a small, sad smile, so unlike his previous boastful attitude. "The same."

  "But the Seastar hasn't been seen in the Principalities since before I was born!"

  Tresslar's smile grew a bit wider. "It was a long time ago."

  "I meant no offense, but if you sailed with Erdis Cai, then you must know what happened to him and the rest of his crew. There are so many stories…"

  Tresslar's smile fell away.

  Asenka sensed there was another tale here, one that was difficult for Tresslar to speak of. Still, one story at a time. "So you were twenty-four," Asenka prompted.

  "Yes, and the Seastar was headed for Trebaz Sinara."

  Asenka almost interrupted again, but she stopped herself. Trebaz Sinara… Every child in the Principalities had grown up listening to stories about the fabled island. According to legend, Trebaz Sinara was inhabited by the most terrible of monsters and surrounded by treacherous reefs that made landing there all but impossible, but legend also told that the island contained the hidden treasure of two thousand years of pirate raids-gold, precious gems, dragonshards, mystic relics… objects of unimaginable wealth and power. There were also said to be ancient tombs on the island, but who had built them, or what dark secrets they held within their sealed walls, remained a mystery.

  Asenka knew that Trebaz Sinara was a real place, but she'd never spoken to anyone who had actually been there. Tresslar suddenly seemed less like a crotchety old man than a figure who had stepped right out of legend. As attentive as she'd been before, she was doubly so now.

  Tresslar continued. "We'd sailed past the island numerous times on our way to Regalport or Orgalos, but we'd never attempted to make landfall before, though every time we passed Trebaz Sinara, Erdis made sure the Seastar always came in view of the island, even if it added days to our journey. He would stand at the railing and gaze out upon the deadly reefs that ringed the island, and though he wouldn't say anything, his eyes gleamed with desire, and we all knew that he was trying to imagine what riches and adventures might lie waiting for him there.

  "Two weeks earlier we had put in to Skairn for supplies, and Erdis, who was something of a card sharp, had entered a high-stakes game of three-pronged crown between a number of prominent, not to mention notorious, sea captains. It was even rumored that several barons were in attendance. However, since Erdis was the only one of the Seastar present, I cannot confirm this. The game lasted for three days straight, and when it was over, Erdis had managed to double his money, but one of the players who owed Erdis had run out of funds, and he paid off his debt with a treasure map.

  "I know what you're thinking: every lowlife gambler in the Principalities tries to pay off his or her debts with false treasure maps, but this debtor was a merchant lord of some repute and was also a longstanding acquaintance of Erdis's, so he accepted the map without even looking it over, though in truth Erdis was doubtful it would prove to be of any real value. Once back aboard the Seastar, and after getting some much-needed sleep, Erdis finally examined the map. He couldn't believe what he was looking at: the map depicted the northeastern tip of Trebaz Sinara, and what's more, it showed a route through the reefs. Erdis could no more resist the map's lure than a starving wolf can resist a plump, slow-footed sheep, so we set sail immediately. Two weeks later we dropped anchor off the coast of Trebaz Sinara.

  "Erdis selected a landing crew of a half dozen men and women, myself among them. As ship's artificer, I often accompanied Erdis on dangerous trips, and I'm proud to say that my skills with magic saved his life on more than one occasion, but this time I was ambivalent to be going along. After all, this was Trebaz Sinara, and I feared there was no chance of our coming back alive. Still, it was my duty to go, and truth be told, I would rather have died than display cowardice before Erdis. He ordered a long boat lowered into the water. We climbed aboard and began rowing to the reef. Since Erdis preferred that I save my strength for working magic, I was able to sit and watch while others rowed. Erdis stood at the prow of the boat, map unfurled in his hands, and barked out orders to the rowers: 'Five full strokes, three port, seven starboard!' The rowers obeyed his commands instantly, and we began the long, twisting journey through the barrier maze of reef. How long it took us, I cannot say, but at last we won free of the reef and rowed the rest of the way to shore. The entire time we were in open water, I kept expecting some manner of monster to burst out of the sea and devour us, but none did, and I began to wonder if the stories of the terrible creatures that infested Trebaz Sinara were nothing but sea tales, perhaps originated by the ancient pirates who hid their treasure upon the island to discourage those who would attempt to search for it. Whichever the case, we made landfall without incident. We gathered our weapons and supplies, and set off for the island's interior, with Erdis leading the way, of course.

  "From the start, it was clear that there was something strange about the island, or at least the northeastern portion of it. The landscape was a patchwork of different kinds of vegetation and soil. There were the usual trees that you expect to see in the Principalites: oak, elm, ash, fir, evergreen… but there were also trees that rightfully belonged to warmer clime
s: cypress, orange blossom, palm trees… Tropical fruit trees were abundant as well, and though it was summer, such fruit did not belong there, did not exist anywhere else in the Principalities, so far as any of us knew. The soil was just as varied. Sometimes it was a rich moist black, other times dry red clay, and sometimes it was cracked, barren, and lifeless as any desert. The air was still and stale, and as we trekked across the island following the path laid out in Erdis's map, we began to feel weighed down, as if some invisible force had settled on us and was slowly, inexorable pushing us toward the ground. Adding to the overall oppressive atmosphere was an eerie silence. Monsters or no, an island of that size, with all that vegetation, should've been teeming with birds, animals, and insects, yet we saw or heard no signs of such life as we walked.

  "The crewmembers began to grow increasingly nervous, myself included, but when we told Erdis of our fears, he just laughed and asked if we wanted to live forever. We weren't surprised by his reaction, since his cavalier attitude toward danger was familiar to us all. Erdis was drawn to peril like a moth to flame, and in the end, I suppose, with much the same result."

  The artificer paused, as if momentarily lost in thought, then he shook his head sadly and resumed his tale.

  "We continued for some hours until we finally came to a rocky hillside and Erdis called a halt. He grinned, pointed to a cave opening in the hillside, and declared that we had reached our destination. By this time many in the landing party had begun to doubt the worth of Erdis's map, but upon seeing the cave, all their doubts were erased, and enthusiasm-which had been in short supply among us for some time-began to run high once again. Someone, I forget who, asked Erdis what lay inside the cave. Still grinning, Erdis said, 'That's what we've come to find out.' Erdis drew his sword, the rest of us took our own weapons in hand, and we followed our captain up the sloping hillside.

  "The smell hit us before we were halfway to the cave entrance-the musky scent of lizard, combined with an acrid chemical stink that burned our throats and noses and made our eyes water. I'd never smelled anything like it before, but evidently Erdis had, for he whispered, 'Green dragon.'

  "His words struck me like an arrow through the heart. I'd encountered more than my fair share of monsters since signing onto the Seastar, but I'd never faced a dragon before, and the thought of doing so terrified me. I was near to confessing my terror to Erdis and begging him to let me remain outside the cave when, as if sensing my fear, he turned to me and spoke first. 'This breed of dragon breathes poisonous fumes that result in agonizing death for any who are unfortunate enough to inhale them.' He put his hand on my shoulder then. 'But we have no reason to fear, do we, Tresslar? Not with our ship's artificer protecting us.'

  "I wasn't at all confident that I could force myself to take a single step inside the cave, let alone protect Erdis and the others from the dragon's poison breath, but Erdis looked at me with a trust-filled gaze and squeezed my shoulder, and though my fear didn't vanish altogether, it did diminish to the point where it became manageable. All because of a single look and touch from the man. 'I'll do my best,' I told him, and he smiled. 'That will be more than sufficient. It always has been before.' Then he continued climbing toward the cave entrance and, after a moment's pause, I began following again, the others coming along behind me, their fears allayed as well.

  "I still had concerns, though. I was a self-taught artificer with little formal schooling, and what I knew about dragons came almost entirely from drunken tales I'd heard from the Seastar's crew. I knew most of their stories were lies, but the problem was I didn't know which few weren't, so as we finished our ascent to the beast's lair, I mentally went over all the dragon lore I knew-true or false-and prepared as best I could to justify Erdis's faith in me.

  "There was a good-sized ledge jutting out from the cave entrance, and Erdis examined it closely before letting any of us climb onto it. 'This would be a perfect place for the beast to sun itself,' he whispered, more to himself than to any of us, 'but there are no claw marks in the stone, not even so much as a single scratch.' Erdis seemed troubled by this, and at the time I had no idea why. Now I know that he had been considering two possibilities: either the dragon had an alternate means of entering and exiting its lair, or the beast rarely left-if ever. Despite his misgivings, Erdis started toward the cave entrance, motioning for the rest of us to follow. Other captains might've let the low men on the pecking order go first, but not Erdis. He was always the first to face danger, and in those rare instances when he deemed retreat necessary, the last to flee it. I, as ship's artificer, was usually close behind, and that day in the dragon's lair was no exception.

  "The sun had dipped close to the horizon by the time we reached the hillside, and little light came through the cave entrance. On my wrists I wore bracelets with a pair of light-stones set into the metal. I willed the light-stones to activate, but I made certain to keep their illumination at low strength: bright enough for us to see, but dim enough that we hopefully wouldn't draw undue attention to ourselves. The tunnel was more than large enough for us to move easily without having to crouch or squeeze through single file, and soon several of us-myself included-were walking alongside Erdis. The tunnel curved to the right and began to angle downward gradually, and though the slope was sometimes steep enough that we had to work to keep from sliding, we managed to maintain our footing as we continued ever downward.

  "The air in the tunnel grew thicker and more acrid the deeper we went, and breathing became increasingly more difficult. I motioned for everyone to stop, and Erdis-undoubtedly knowing that I intended to do something about the gaseous air-did not dispute my right to call a halt. I slipped off my pack, rummaged through the contents until I found what I was looking for: a handful of pebbles. These weren't ordinary rocks. They'd been given to me by a locathah shaman when Erdis and the rest of us helped her tribe stave off an attack by a band of sahuagin. The fish-woman had enchanted the pebbles to allow surface dwellers to breathe underwater, and we were able to fight the sahuagin on their own terms. The pebbles had worked fine during the battle with the sea devils, but I had no idea if they could be adapted to function in our current situation. I pulled out my artificer's tools, worked on the pebbles for several moments, and when I was finished, I placed one under my tongue, counted to ten, then inhaled deeply through my nostrils.

  "The air I took in was as clear and sweet as any I had ever breathed, and what's more, the gaseous fumes no longer stung my eyes. I had hoped as much, since the saltwater hadn't affected our vision when we fought alongside the locathah. Confident that the pebbles worked, I passed one out to every crewmember, including Erdis. Keeping a pebble stashed under one's tongue made speech difficult, but since we'd been proceeding in silence so far, I hoped this wouldn't prove much of a drawback. Thus we continued onward. Eventually the tunnel broadened and we saw a glowing green light ahead of us. I deactivated my light-stones, and we proceeded with cautious excitement toward the source of the verdant glow.

  "We rounded a final bend and the tunnel opened into a vast cavern. Immediately we saw the source of the green light: both the cavern's stalactites and stalagmites were coated with some form of luminescent substance, a mold or perhaps some form of moss. Whatever it was, while its light wasn't bright as day, it was sufficient to illuminate the entire cavern-and most importantly, the cavern's sole occupant-a huge green dragon.

  "Despite the pebble in my mouth, I found myself holding my breath at the sight of the awesome beast. The magnificent creature lay curled up on the cavern floor, head resting on its tail, eyes closed, greenish vapor curling forth from both its nostrils and the corners of its mouth. Even asleep, the beast exuded an almost palpable aura of power, and I was so awed by the dragon's sheer presence that I didn't notice what Erdis did. He leaned close to my ear, so close his lips almost touched my flesh, and whispered, 'No hoard.' Aside from the green dragon-and us, of course-the cavern was empty. While I'm sure that Erdis felt disappointed that there was no treasure, I later came
to understand that he was more concerned because of how strange it was for the dragon not to have some kind of hoard. It was the one constant in all the tales about the beasts I'd ever heard. For reasons known only to themselves, dragons have a need, a compulsion almost, to surround themselves with treasure, but this dragon had none.

  "Then another mystery soon revealed itself. We didn't notice at first, for the air in the cave was hazy from the proliferation of fumes wafting forth from the dragon's snout, but the longer we stood there, the more we came to realize that the creature was wounded, terribly so. The wings folded against its back were shredded, their bones twisted and broken. Iridescent scales had been torn away in numerous places, exposing raw bloody flesh beneath. Fractured ribs jutted out from the creature's sides, and jagged fragments of bone protruded from its shattered limbs. We might've thought the dragon dead if not for its breathing, and even that we now realized was labored and irregular.

  "Once more Erdis leaned close to my ear and whispered, 'This beast has come here to die. We should leave it in peace.' We might have done so, too, except the dragon chose that moment to shift its position. It didn't move much, merely lifted its head off its tail, stretched its neck, and then settled its head on its front feet, eyes closed the entire time, but the movement was enough to reveal that the dragon wasn't entirely bereft of treasure, for we now saw that around its neck hung a golden chain, and dangling on the end of it-"