Cletus danced around the growing trollkin striking it over and over mercilessly, not giving Khurley a chance to attack, each strike punctuated by a lyric, “Cracking friends . . . fighting . . . elbow friends . . . nose friends . . . breaking . . . falling frieends!”
“If you don’t-!” Lenny shouted, stumbling backwards as he took a glancing blow from the mutated insect trollkin. “Stop singin’ that dag-blasted, ear-curlin’ song I’ll-.” This time he swung Buster’s head into the thing’s chitin-covered fist as it punched, breaking its fingers and shattering its wrist. “-Stop bein’ yer dag-gum friend! How’s that?”
Khurley lurched up from the ground. Cletus ducked a swing of his arm and sent Really Heavy straight up to strike the trollkin under the chin, breaking his jaw in another place as he sang a mournful, “Sad friends . . .”
With all the opponents occupied by her friends, Tarah saw that the entrance to the hospital was open. She ran inside, following the line of the bond. She headed along a dark hallway in ankle-deep water, noticing that the bond seemed to angle downward. How was this possible? Did the place have a basement?
She turned to head down another passageway, then turned back. She heard a whimpering sound. There was a scratch at a door behind her. The door was barred.
Tarah hesitated, letting something out that scratched at a door here was probably a bad idea but a sneaking suspicion overcame her. She removed the bar and pulled the door open. A stench wafted from the room and she jumped back as a stony-scaled kobald ran out on all fours, smacking its head on the opposing wall.
“Gray?” she said. “Gray, is that you?”
The part-dog glanced at her, its long tongue lolling, before it turned and splashed back down the corridor the way Tarah had come. It’s small dog tail pointed upward at attention. Tarah glanced in the room Gray had been in and saw Djeri’s breastplate leaning against the wall.
“He’s here!” Tarah shouted and hurried after the dog.
Gray clicked down the corridor, sniffing at the wall. He stopped and let out a tiny whimper, sitting back on his haunches as he stared at a seemingly solid slab of stone. Tarah approached him and hesitantly reached out to touch him.
A series of images flashed through her mind of a confrontation with Mellinda followed by capture. Djeri had been taken downward while Gray had been locked in that room. The part dog could smell a trace of Djeri’s scent coming up from below mixed with a myriad of other trollkin.
Tarah now saw that water was slowly disappearing under the wall. She reached out and began feeling around it, and catching the memories of several trollkin and Mellinda as they reached down and lifted . . .
Tarah ran her fingers along the base of the wall looking for someplace she could get a good grip. Finally she found it, a series of depressions that she could slide her fingers into. Grunting, she lifted. The heavy stone wall, somehow counterweighted on the other side, began to rise. It only lifted a few inches before it stuck. Tarah strained but couldn’t get it to budge.
Water now flowed more swiftly under the wall. She could hear it falling down the stairs and Djeri’s death in her last dream came to mind. If there was a dungeon in this place it was filling with water.
“Help!” she cried. “I need some help in here!”
Heavy splashes came in from the entryway and Lenny approached. “Tarah girl, what’d you find?”
The dwarf’s face was bruised, one eye swelling shut. A long slash went down the side of his face, but there was no pain in his expression. He saw what she was trying to do and immediately came to her side. He gripped the underside of the wall and strained along with her.
“What’s with the squattin’ kobald?” he asked, grunting between syllables. Gray was sitting there expectantly, not afraid of either of them, waiting to go down when they got the wall open.
“Djeri’s dog,” she explained. “Come on, Gray! Help us! Grab the door!”
The part dog blinked at them and sniffed at Lenny. Then it got down and began to wedge its upper body under the wall. Grunting, it pushed upwards, straining with them.
After a few straining seconds, there was a scraping noise and the wall rose. The smell that came up from below was putrid. There was a soft light streaming from a corridor below. Gray leapt inside and promptly began to tumble down the stairs. He hit the water at the base of the stairs with a splash.
Tarah and Lenny rushed down after him. The stairs were treacherous and slippery, but they made it to the bottom and into water that was waist deep. Glow orbs were set into the walls every so often, lighting the way. They could see doors set into either side of the corridor all the way down, each one barred from the outside, Gray was already splashing ahead of them, his powerful rear legs churning through the nasty water.
“Place better not have two floors,” Lenny worried and Tarah couldn’t agree more. If Djeri was on a deeper level they were already too late.
“Djeri!” she called. “Djeri where are you?”
“Nephew!” Lenny yelled.
A series of calls echoed out from cells all down the hall, pleading for help. Clawed fingers stuck out of slots in the doors. “Let us out!”
“What do we do?” Lenny wondered and Tarah didn’t blame him. These were trollkin, possible enemies. If they were attacked down here they could be easily overwhelmed.
Tarah shook her head. “They are prisoners. Locked away here by Mellinda,” she said looking at the dwarf. “People all of them.”
He nodded. “I was thinkin’ the same. Just . . .”
“You free the other prisoners. I’ll get Djeri.”
Lenny grimaced and pushed through the water to the first cell. He grabbed the bar. “Now don’t try and bite me or nothin’!”
Tarah rushed past him to the pleading cries of trollkin of all types. She saw Gray at the end of the corridor, his hands up on a door. Tarah’s heart beat faster. The silvery white line of the bond pointed that way.
Before she could get there, a door opened in front of her and a voice shouted. “Stop your yelling! Nobody gets back until Mellinda . . .”
Out stepped a tall and thin female trollkin with leathery green skin. A necklace of teeth hung around her neck. She looked at Tarah with surprised mismatched eyes. “A human?”
“Mellinda’s dead,” Tarah told her, holding her spear at the ready. “The king fed her to the Mother.”
The female frowned. “Not likely.”
She lifted her hand and Tarah felt a wave of magic roll over her, attacking at the edges of the bond. It was a powerful attack and Tarah knew that without the bond she would be doing whatever this thing told her to do.
“Step back,” she warned. Her instinct was to spin the spear as a threat, but the corridor was too confined. It was going to be hard to fight with that long spear down here. “I’m here for Djeri.”
It raised a scraggly eyebrow. “You his bonding wizard? Wait. Yes, I remember that bent-nosed face now.”
“Get out of the way. Or help me. This place is flooding and everyone down here is gonna drown,” Tarah said.
“Mellinda won’t let that happen,” the female said and lunged forward.
“Duck yer head!” shouted Lenny from behind.
Tarah dropped down and Lenny’s second throwing hammer streaked past where she had been, striking the female with a skull-shattering thud. Sharp teeth scattered into the water and the trollkin fell back with a splash.
“Good throw!” said an unfamiliar voice.
“Thanks, Uncle Lenny!” Tarah called, looking back to see the corridor filling with trollkin prisoners working to set others free.
Lenny stood in front of them and yelled back, “Don’t lose my blasted hammer!”
Tarah bent over the mostly submerged female and sloshed her hand around in the water until she felt the throwing hammer and grabbed it. Then, after a second’s thought, lifted the female trollkin’s torso out of the water and propped her up against the wall. If she survived that attack maybe she wouldn’t drown.
Tarah hurried through the deepening water to the door where Gray was frantically fumbling at the heavy bar, unable to figure out how to move it. Tarah’s bond pointed right for that cell. She threw the bar off, pulling the door open.
Shackled against the back wall of the cell, Djeri hung from his wrists. Water covered him halfway up his chest.
Tarah’s breath caught in her throat. His head was slumped forward, shadows obscuring his face, but his body didn’t look all that different from the Djeri she remembered. He had the same broad hairy chest. His skin color was close to the same. The hair on his head was lighter and arms were slightly longer maybe and the short curved claws on the end of his fingers had been expected, but . . .
Gray splashed inside, rushing up to him. Tarah shook free of her shock and was right behind the part dog. While Gray licked at his hidden face, Tarah reached for the manacles. They were held shut by steel pins, thankfully not locked.
“Djeri,” she said. “It’s me.”
He continued to hang limply and when Tarah opened the first manacle, his arm simply dropped and he swung lower in the water. She saw something black around his neck. It was a collar. A series of bewitching and bonding runes were set into it.
Tarah grabbed him, ignoring the slimy coating to his skin as she tried to lift him out of the water, but he was heavy. Just dead weight.
Lenny splashed to the doorway, the water up to his chest. “Got him?”
“He’s unconscious,” she said. “Help me hold him up!”
The dwarf pushed his way over to her and shoved the part kobald to the side so that he could get his arms around his nephew. Lenny grunted and lifted him slightly. “We gotta get him outta here quick or we’ll be swimmin’!”
Tarah reached for the collar around Djeri’s neck, feeling for the latch. It seemed somehow attached to his skin. Finally, she found it just under his left ear. The collar loosened and she pried it off of him, finding that it was anchored to his skin by a row of piercing spikes.
The moment she pulled the collar free, she could feel him in the bond once again. Djeri gasped and surged out of the water, throwing Lenny off of him and standing up to his full height. He was just as tall as Tarah. He swung around wild-eyed and then he saw Tarah.
She saw his face for the first time in the light. It really was Djeri. His eyebrows were too thin, his nose a bit narrow. But his eyes were those same light green.
“Tarah?” he said in shock and she rushed in to kiss him.
He staggered, still anchored to the wall by one wrist, but he pulled her close with his other arm. This was the kiss she remembered. Sure his teeth were pointed and his smell was slightly different, but this was him. She had her Djeri back!
Lenny let them kiss for a moment before clearing his throat. “Uh, I’m here too. You don’t gotta kiss me or nothin, but I’ll take a hug.”
“Uncle Lenny!” he said and his voice, though slightly deeper than before, had his same familiar timbre. Tarah reached up to help him remove that last manacle and then grabbed Gray who was half swimming, half on his toes.
“Know what? Let’s save the hug till after were outta this nasty place,” said Lenny.
* * *
Justan pulled the rings off of Arcon’s fingers and stood with a shiver. He could feel the power of the things and to his mage sight they glowed in every color of the magical spectrum.
“They look pretty,” said Witch Jasmine.
“You are not thinking to put those on?” said Jhonate, aghast.
Justan grimaced. “I don’t know what else to do. We’re trapped in this place and she’ll get to us sooner or later. Anyone else here know how to use a mix of elemental and spirit magic?”
This sounds like a very bad idea, said Artemus.
I know, but what other choice do I have? Justan replied.
“What are they?” Xeldryn asked, just as unnerved by the artifact as Jhonate.
Justan’s skin crawled as the jeweled rings slid across his palms. “The Rings of Stardeon. He was the wizard who created the rogue horses. He used these rings to do it.”
Father . . . thought Gwyrtha, watching the rings with an emotion akin to nostalgia.
“There is a spirit bound to those rings,” Jasmine observed. “A very powerful one.”
“A great wyrm,” Justan said. The great wyrm was one of the famed monsters of legend, a huge snake-like dragon with hypnotic powers. The jewels in the rings were crystalized mental energy that the wyrm had stolen from its horde of slaves. “It’s soul attacked Stardeon as he bound it to the rings. Killed most of his bonded.”
“And you’re thinking of putting them on?” said Stolz in shock. “What if it does so again?”
“Supposedly, Stardeon destroyed its will when he finished binding it,” Justan said, but he wasn’t so certain as the words came out of his mouth. There was a certain hunger coming from them.
“That makes this risk worth it?” Jhonate asked. “Do you plan to use them to freeze a larger section of the Troll Mother so that we may escape?”
“The rings can penetrate a soul from a distance,” Justan said. “I plan to use them to force Mellinda’s mind to the surface so that it can be destroyed.”
The First put his face in his trollish hands. “It must be done.”
“I need to get a consensus from my bonded first,” Justan said.
He closed his eyes and concentrated. Fist and Deathclaw were still on the upper exterior of the palace. Deathclaw was surrounded by a protective halo as he used Star’s powers to burn away Mellinda’s continuous attempt to cover the palace, while Fist blasted tentacles with magic.
He showed Fist and Deathclaw what had happened, explained what he was thinking to do. Understandably, they all felt a great trepidation at the idea, but each one to Justan’s surprise acquiesced.
Do what you must, said Deathclaw.
We trust you, said Fist.
Me too, Gwyrtha added.
Artemus was the only one reticent. If it wasn’t for the dream I would say not to risk it.
I will need your help with this, Artemus, Justan said. I need you to monitor me and step in if it gets too dangerous. Many people have used the Rings of Stardeon over the years, but I don’t know if they have ever been used by another bonding wizard. Anything could happen.
I understand, Artemus said. I will be ready.
Taking a deep breath he turned to the others standing in the corridor with him. “They have agreed.” He looked to Jhonate and after thinking about it, pulled her Jharro ring and Artemus’ ring off of his fingers. He placed them in her hand and explained, “I don’t know how they would interact with each other. Stand close to me. If it looks like I am losing control or if anything happens to Gwyrtha, you pull them off of me.”
Jhonate nodded and Justan closed his eyes briefly to compose himself. He lifted the first set of rings and slid the first one over the thumb of his left hand.
His awareness sharpened and the world around him slowed as the metal slid over his skin. His thumb began to curve unnaturally. A presence awakened in the rings.
He slid one over his forefinger and the process repeated. The finger curved bonelessly, the tip of it questing at the air as if searching for something. The middle finger was next and as his finger curled, he felt a hunger from the rings. They began to pull at his vitality.
Justan, warned Artemus.
I expected this, he responded. They made Ewzad emaciated when he wore them until he did whatever magic to make them permanent. Just keep watching.
The first set was on and Justan focused on his fingers, gaining enough control to put the second set on, sliding the first ring over his right thumb. When he did so, the drain on his vitality increased. Justan felt the awakening of the spirit bound to the rings. It was eager to bond itself to him. Then it noticed his other bonds. There was a flash of jealousy from it and Justan understood the danger.
Artemus, I need you to block the bond. I think the wyrm may try to drain the v
itality from everyone. I will need you to stop it. Use the power of the Scralag if you need to.
Are you certain? said Artemus. We could stop this now.
There is no better choice available, Justan explained.
He felt the wizard’s cold presence fill the bond. I am ready.
Justan slid the rest of the rings on and the power raged through him. All of Stardeon’s magic was now at his fingertips. This was power of a kind he could never have imagined. He had felt the pure energy of the rogue horses and had faced the might of Ewzad Vriil and Mellinda, but they had nothing like this.
He realized what a sad little wizard Ewzad had been. His pitiful amount of power had been amplified by the rings, but it was laughable. He suppressed a giggle and reality came back to him. He swallowed. No wonder Ewzad had gone insane.
“Justan, what has happened to you?” Jhonate whispered.
Justan looked down to see that his arms, once powerfully muscled were reduced to a wiry state. His clothing hung loosely on his body and he knew that the rest of him had been affected as well. He didn’t feel weak though. He felt stronger than ever.
“It’s an effect of the rings,” he explained. “They borrow the life force of the user. I will be fine once I take them off.”
He raised his hands, grimacing at his writhing fingers, wrapping around each other like a nest of snakes. The others in the rooms recoiled and he didn’t blame them. He needed to get this over with.
He commanded his fingers to bend to his control and as he went to grasp the handle of the sword, he felt the great wyrm attack. The spirit of the legendary monster struck through the bond intending to feast on the vitality of the others, but Artemus stood in its way. He wrapped his frosty thoughts around the wyrm and together they vanished from the bond.
The great wyrm, ancient subterranean dragon, once ruler over a thousand goblin tribes, now found itself in a frozen corridor surrounded by walls of ice. Its snake-like body with its black armored scales was coiled up as it examined its surroundings. The walls were sheer and incredibly tall. The wyrm could see that it could not climb over them, despite its immense length.
Behemoth (The Jharro Grove Saga Book 6) Page 43