by Vic Broquard
Zoran then sent Evsen to fetch Jarka. No way was he going to delve deep underground looking for some secret stash without his expert trap finder present. Thus far, nothing they had searched had held any traps. Long ago, someone or something had mostly knocked them down. Certainly Bandar would have kept his precious journals protected with powerful spells.
She arrived most excited. “So it is real! There is a Pacov Fortress after all. I really didn’t think you’d be able to find it. Way to go Honani. Now for this Sublevel 5. Must be underground.”
She took an orienting look around and marched up to the ruined keep at the very center of the peak. “Has to be under here, Zoran. This would be the heart of the fortress. Somewhere, perhaps buried under all these collapsed stone walls must lie a stairs downward. Let’s move all this debris off this central area. Spell time, gang.”
Levitate spells flew right and left. Such a simple spell was known to everyone here. Rapidly, the countless stones which had once formed the walls of the keep were moved off of the central area of the peak. Before long, three stone stairwells appeared and they focused on clearing out each one, uncertain which one would lead them ultimately to their destination. It was certain that no one had been down these stairs in millennia.
Ever cautious, Jarka then had Zoran, Karel, and herself cast their Roving Eye spells, conjuring a remote giant eye that they then moved on down the stairs. Each one took a different set. The objective: to see what lay ahead without risking their lives. She based her extreme caution on all of the many protections that the barons currently had in place in their own fortresses. Nearly all had their Circles of Ascensions located in the depths of their keeps, surrounded by all manner of protections, some physical, some magical. Just walking down into the depths beneath a keep could well spell a surprise, sudden, and violent death for the unwary. She anticipated no less here.
“Trap on step twenty!” Jarka called out. A bit later, Karel and Zoran, having been alerted by Jarka, also discovered a trap in their stairs, but on different steps. These were merely physical traps, activated by the weight of a person on the step. A stone block would be dropped on the unwary. Jarka herself disarmed each of the three. All three stairs led to a different section of a series of connected rooms. Satisfied, they divided up into their three teams and each group headed down separate stairs. “Remember to search for traps every inch of the way once you get to the rooms down there,” she cautioned everyone. Karel grumbled. Of course he’d check for traps.
The rooms had once been the granaries for the keep and now contained only the dust remnants along with several sets of human remains, ghastly eyeball-less skulls staring up at the intruders. It was a little chilling. Zoran assumed that they had been trapped here when the walls of the keep came crashing down, blocking all the stairs. At least they didn’t starve to death, he presumed. Two more stairs led further downward.
Once more, they cast their Roving Eye spells and slowly moved them down the stairs, casting additional Light spells as needed. Meantime, the others set about casting Permanent Light spells around this first level. This time, Zoran and Jarka each found a Symbol Trap, marked by a faint magical rune on the wall beside the steps. If the unwary had walked past it without speaking the disarm word, the spell would detonate today, just as it would have a millennia ago. Magic does not fade with time, Jarka pointed out to the others. Karel growled. Of course it didn’t.
This second level contained smaller rooms and most chambers were laboratories of one kind or another. Jarka recognized a potion making lab, for example, though all of its contents were now completely worthless. She would have liked to examine a potion maker’s book, but the instant she touched it, the book disintegrated into a pile of dust — she being the first in a millennia to disturb it in any way.
Two stairs led on down. While the others joined them and cast Permanent Lights around the area, Zoran and Jarka worked on the downward stairs as before. This time, they both discovered Protection Wards cast about every ten feet down the stairwell. They cast their Dispel spells four times, safely removing each one. Zoran noted that one of these wards, if triggered, would have caused the person to go insane and run away. Another would have frozen the person to the spot, unable to move his or her legs. Someone definitely did not want the uninvited to gain access to these lower levels.
This third level held the treasury and armory, both heavily protected with numerous spells and traps. The trio of Karel, Jarka, and Zoran spent an entire hour detecting and canceling them. Because of the sheer number of them, all three checked over each other’s work to make sure no one missed a single trap. At last, the others joined them and they began opening up the rooms. “Jackpot!” declared Karel upon opening the main treasury room. He’d already opened the minor treasury only to find piles of silver coins. Valuable, yes, but not very. This room, however, was quite different. Gold, gems, and some fine jewelry sparkled in the Permanent Light that Karel placed just inside the door. Of course, the tables on which the things had rested had long ago turned to dust, dropping the coins, gems, and jewelry onto the stone floor in a confused mass of dust and valuables.
“Hum, small jackpot, Karel,” Evsen commented as he took a look inside. “I’d say that whoever owned this cleared out most all of it before they left here. Still I am not complaining.” Karel grinned. Neither was he.
The armory contained a number of rusted, now worthless swords, and one enchanted dagger, still shiny after all these years. “Looks like they took their weapons with them,” Zoran theorized.
Leaving the others to collect what treasure was still here, Zoran and Jarka worked their magic on the next pair of stairs that led further down beneath the mountain. Again, they defused more traps. This fourth level was far smaller than those above them, and they were at least a hundred feet below the surface, maybe more. Here the rooms appeared to have once been plush bedrooms, probably the secret hiding place for the fortress rulers, he guessed.
Among the decomposed bedding, the others discovered a number of minor magical items, a woman’s hair brush, a man’s razor, a pitcher that always seemed full of cold, clear water, for example. Once more while the others searched the dusty rooms, gathering up what seemed valuable, the two worked together on the single stairs that led even further down. Miroslav and Jarmila were right behind them for this would be the mysterious Sublevel 5 where the journals must be hidden!
Discovering no traps here at all, Jarka and Zoran rechecked every step downward twice over. “I can’t believe this!” Jarka exclaimed, having finished her third complete search of the narrow stairs. The four headed down to a small, single room. “Sublevel 5,” Jarka pronounced. “Light!”
Looking over each other’s shoulders, except Jarka who was in the lead, they saw a small room with a single bed, desk, and chair. All had turned to dust and collapsed. However, a magical writing quill lay on the floor where it had fallen. Jarka picked it up and stowed it safely in her pouch. Quickly the four cast their Permanent Light spells, making the room appear as if it were lit by bright sunlight. For russet colored walls stared back at them.
“So where are the journals?” asked Jarmila.
“Don’t rush me,” Jarka said, as she cast her Detect Traps spells and slowly examined every inch of the room. Satisfied there were none, she cast her other detection spells. Finding nothing, she took out her dagger and began tapping lightly on the stone walls, looking for hollow sounds which would indicate a secret compartment or room off of this one. She found none.
“You mean they aren’t here anymore?” Jarmila nearly cried. “Well, I guess he took them with him and we just don’t know where he put them on our worlds.”
“Oh don’t give up yet,” Jarka exclaimed. “That’s why you have me here. I really did not expect to find them this easily.” She continued her work. An hour later, still stumped, she sat down in the middle of the floor to think. Presently, she jumped up, “Ah ha! I have it! Unlock Doors!” She cast her spell. Normally, the spell would unloc
k all normal doors which were locked in a fifty foot radius around her body. However, just as she suspected, right in the center of the room in mid-air, a shimmering two-foot square door appeared. “Extra-dimensional door,” she announced for the other’s benefit, adding, “similar to the one we made to store all Bandar’s stuff by Zoran’s Circle of Ascension. Now what was that code on the paper?”
Hastily, Jarmila retrieved her copy of it and called out, “A52C96. Why? What do we do with. . .” she didn’t finish her thought or sentence. The instant she finished uttering the last syllable of the code, the door opened wide. Everyone looked inside. Twenty perfectly preserved journals lay perfectly positioned. Each had a large letter on its binding, going from A to T. Each volume was about a foot square and two inches thick. All four cheered and relayed the news to the others who were standing on the stairs outside this small room.
Zoran handed the precious journals one by one to Miroslav and Jarmila, who packed them very carefully into the bags that they brought with them, five volumes per bag, four bags worth. There was nothing else inside the extra-dimensional closet and when Jarka shut the door, the whole thing vanished once more.
Everyone headed up the stairs to the more spacious Sublevel 4. “Okay, mission accomplished. Time to head for home,” Zoran announced. “Well done all of you.”
“Say, we have been finding a number of magical swords in some of these ruins. How about letting Strike Force One stick around and search for more?” asked Viktor. “We’ve already found enough to arm a second Strike Force. If we end up having to fight the dragons, these will be extremely valuable.” He didn’t mention all of the other treasure that they had been finding, however.
“Agreed. Honani, you and your group can stay too, if you like. As far as the treasure goes, why don’t you divide it in half? You divide one half of it into sixteenths, one for each planet, including Asami. You divide the other half amongst yourselves as your reward for jobs more than well done.”
“Thank you Baron Zoran, that is most generous of you,” Viktor replied, very diplomatically. Kaya grinned.
“Just keep your guard up at all times. There are still reds and blacks around, mostly up north. Evsen, give me a report at the end of each day. Hang on to the rods you have in case the dragons decide to attack you,” Zoran added. He received a big round of thanks.
A few minutes later, Jarka, Miroslav, Jarmila, Karel, and Zoran arrived back at his fortress, carrying their precious journals with them. Mission accomplished!
That was not the same comment that Werner, the black, said, at nearly the same time, however. Late November, Werner and Dario received some most shocking news. Zoran and a large party were on Voss. He immediately stepped up the security around the Breeding Caverns, as they now called their new site. “How the Hell did he find us this time?” Werner screeched.
Angry, he and Dario headed to Voss at once to see what the situation actually was. The next day, circling high above the tiny figures down in the desert of Anwyn, Werner spotted Zoran. Now he kept them under constant surveillance. Quickly he concluded, “We are in luck, Dario. Zoran must only know that the women are here on Voss, but he does not know where they are being held. He doesn’t know the location of the Breeding Caverns. That is apparent.”
A few days later, Werner became worried again. “There can be no question of it; they are searching every cavern they can find. They have to know the women are being held on Voss and are looking into every cavern. Well so far they are looking far from us up here in the north. Still, in time they will likely find the Breeding Cavern. We must take drastic steps, Dario, drastic steps.
“We should send out Invisible spies,” Dario concluded. Werner agreed. For weeks, their spies reported back on the various explorations of the three groups. Then, one day they reported that all three groups merged and were searching one set of ruins down south.
“Wait a minute. This doesn’t make sense, Dario. Why would they be removing all the debris from a collapsed building? Obviously, we are not keeping their women in such a place. Come on; we need to see this ourselves.” The two cast Invisibility and headed down to the ruins. No one was above ground when they arrived, but three stairwells led deep underground.
“What are they doing?” asked Dario.
“For once, old friend, I have no idea, but at least they do not seem to be looking for their women. Perhaps we are catching a well-deserved break,” Werner replied. They waited patiently.
Sometime later, the humans appeared climbing up the steps to the peak. They noticed that Zoran and three others were carrying four bulky bags. Further, Dario pointed out that the humans seemed extremely pleased about something.
“We have been duped, Dario! Zoran must have found some kind of new super-weapon that lay hidden here on Voss. He was searching for that all this time. Now he has found it. Look how happy they all are, as if they know that now they will easily be able to kill all us dragons!” Werner concluded.
“We are doomed by this secret weapon! No, no, no! There must be something that we can do, Werner, but what?” Dario pleaded mournfully.
“Wait, look, the others are not leaving. It looks like they are continuing their searches. Hum, we need to keep a close watch on them. Are they looking for the Breeding Cavern after all or are they after more super-weapons? We must know, Dario. Come on. We must follow them.
A few days later, they had answers, sort of. “One thing is obvious, Dario. They are raiding all these places looking for magical weapons to use against us. They are trying to arm an army so they can attack us.”
“True, Werner, but that doesn’t rule out the possibility that they are also looking for the Breeding Cavern as well,” Dario pointed out. Werner conceded that point.
“We must not let them stop us,” Dario continued. “This time, we are being successful. We have each added another fifteen new dragons to our folds. I just got word, another fifteen have been born and are now being taken their new mothers. That makes forty-five so far, with another fifteen are due in just a few more days, at which point we’ll each have added another thirty to our folds. That, dear Werner, is most impressive.”
“Of course, of course, but now we have to address the cramped cavern problem that we are facing. We unfortunately underestimated the space requirements. At this point, we have sixty breeding dragons and our cavern complex is honestly overcrowded, though we are making do. Before we can take another batch in here in December, we will have to setup another Breeding Cavern. With these humans possibly searching for our Breeding Caverns, it might be wise to make several more and split our current sixty up a bit. We don’t want all our dragons in one spot.” Both dragons chuckled at Werner’s jest.
“Okay, I will take care of things here on Voss,” Dario declared.
“And I will see what I can do to stop them from using their new super-weapon against dragon-kind,” Werner stated and then left Voss.
Chapter 33 Up and Down
Yuletide week was nearly there, four more days and the week-long yearly celebrations would begin, starting with the big dance at the Stodgy Inn. Zoran had slept in this morning, while the rumors flew. The secret mission on Voss had been successful, but what was it?
At eleven, Zoran was finally ready to face the world. Per his orders, he had everyone assembled on the fortress parade grounds. He stepped out on a balcony to address them all, magic students and fortress staff alike. Barons Tomas and Jan had brought their key staff here as well, anticipating some exciting news.
“Thank you all for coming. As many of you know, for many weeks some of us have been on a secret mission. Now we are back and the rumors are flying. At this point, I want to set the record straight. We kept our mission a secret from many of you because there are dragon spies in Brn. If word of our mission spread to them, our lives might have been in danger. Now that we are back, I am going to fill all of you in, because in a way, you are all involved in what we found.”
“Brother Miroslav and High Priestess Jarmil
a found a key map to the location of old Bandar Zar’s missing journals. These journals were written before and document the events prior to the founding of our Federation of the Sixteen Planets. It is our belief that they contain vital, crucial information on dragons and their relationship to us humans. The map led us to Voss!”
Gasps echoed among the crowd, many knew that name — the planet from which the dragons came. “Yes, Voss. We have found those missing journals, but we have found things that are perhaps just as important. Our founding fathers, in our case old Baron Valentýn Vladislov, actually was born on Voss and came here to Adapazan from Voss. We found a preserved mural in an Anwyn Holy Temple which showed all of the sixteen republics that formed their political organization. There were sixteen and all had the same names as our sixteen planets! Yes, there was the Republic State of Adapazan, the Republic State of Gladno — yes, a republic for each one of us.”
After the buzz died down he went on, “Unfortunately, it is a dead world now, long devoid of human habitation, probably for at least two millennia. A few dragons inhabit the far north and normal wildlife is now abundant once more. Yes, even antelope have rebounded and are commonplace there. We had several encounters with black and brown bears, as we accidentally strayed into their domains. Still, we found the ruins of towns and cities, proving that our ancestors lived there.”
“Yes, we found isolated stashes of long forgotten treasure, gold, gems, jewelry, which we’ve brought back. More importantly, our fighters have also found many enchanted weapons which are still in excellent shape. We have literally doubled the number of magical blades in existence and I don’t need to tell you just how important that is. Strike Force One and Honani’s Star Dancers are still on Voss, searching for more of these valuable weapons. We’ve taken another small step towards being able to protect our people from the dragons.”