As the ground kept shaking off and on, I worried about more than ice falling. What if the dark elves had started the process for making the volcano erupt?
I dried off and sheathed Chopper, then scooted under the ceiling, low-crawling like I’d once done in Basic Training. My belly had been in the mud then with concertina wire over my head. That sounded blessedly divine compared to wading through this puddle with a trembling glacier scraping at my helmet.
After several meters, the ceiling rose higher again. For the first time, I could stand fully. But it was only to walk a dozen more meters to stare at caved-in chunks of ice that fully blocked the tunnel. This had been done recently.
I leaned Chopper into them, hoping I could melt through once more but worried it would take too long.
Val, Zav spoke into my mind.
Yes?
You need to hurry. He didn’t say why, but his telepathic voice was strained, tense.
Droplets of melted ice languidly ran down the blockage. This would take days.
I’m doing my best. I patted down my gear, considering my other options, and reluctantly settled on two grenades. If I get buried down here, will you do me a favor?
You do not believe I will also be buried?
You’re a dragon. You’re practically indestructible. I didn’t have a way to set the charges and rig a delayed trigger, so I scooted back to the low-ceilinged portion of the tunnel. I would have to throw them and hope for the best.
I wish that were true. What favor do you seek?
Tell my daughter I’m sorry I got her wrapped up in my life and that I didn’t get a chance to talk to her.
I waited for him to scoff and tell me something like I wouldn’t die and I could tell her myself.
Very well, was what he said. I will do this.
I swallowed, my throat tight. Thanks.
Once I was under the low ceiling and had some protection, I pulled the pins on both grenades at once and rolled them so they would nestle against the ice. Then, scooting farther back, I hoped I wasn’t about to bring the glacier down on my head.
31
I managed to get to the other end of the low ceiling and the puddle of melted ice before the grenades blew. The noise was thunderous in the tunnel, and I climbed partway up the side out of some vague notion of avoiding the shockwave that would blast back.
But the tunnel quaked so badly that I tumbled down, barely managing to get my feet under me. Snaps and cracks and a booming crash battered my eardrums. Shards of ice broke away from the ceiling and hammered my helmet.
“Stupid, stupid,” I groaned, even though I hadn’t had a choice.
The ice fall dwindled, but head-sized chunks littered the ground all around me, and larger pieces had fallen from the ceiling I’d carefully melted back. That allowed me to see through to the blockage. It hadn’t been fully demolished, but there was a gap now at the top and red light flowed through.
Another snap came from above and behind me, and more ice crashed down. I had a feeling I wouldn’t be able to get back out the way I had come in.
“So be it.” I clambered over the piles of ice and drew Chopper again as I squeezed through the gap between the top of the blockage and the ceiling.
As I scrambled down the back side, a chamber as large as the one with the lake came into view. I’d expected some kind of laboratory, but I realized that would have been silly. It wasn’t as if the dark elves had brought construction crews up here to install cabinets and counters under the ice.
I didn’t sense anyone in the chamber, but I summoned Sindari again before inching out of the tunnel, listening as I scanned the place.
Crates and packs and toolboxes were stacked against the ice wall where I’d exited, the magic of dozens of devices emanating from them. An infrared light panel resting next to the gear was the source of the red glow, either powered by battery or powered by magic.
Other alcoves and tunnel entrances opened up along the walls of the oval chamber. Most were too small and low to the ground to enter, but I could have walked straight into a few of them. Water gleamed on the textured ice of the expansive ceiling, and cracks in it made me uneasy. But it was the two strange vertical pipes in the center of the chamber, about thirty feet apart and rising out of the ground to waist height, that held my attention.
I was incorrect, Sindari said when he’d formed and determined that there weren’t any enemies in the chamber with us. It was an explosive.
I spun toward him, afraid he’d been horribly injured, but he appeared no different than usual.
I flung it away in time, and nobody was hurt. But my chieftain had words for me.
Did I bring you back before the lecture was complete?
Yes. Thank you.
Will you start checking those packs and crates? As I pointed him toward them, I spotted a binder underneath a bag. No, look in that first. Can you read Dark Elven?
No. Can you?
No. My charm only translated spoken words. I’d tried before to read a foreign language with it and hadn’t had any luck. Maybe there are pictures to look at. I’m going to check out those pipes, and then I’ll join you. Zav said we need to hurry.
The ground trembled, and the ice groaned.
Yes, I can see that.
I ran to the first pipe. There was a hint of magic about it, though it appeared simple, not like one of their devices or tools. The pipes were metal and there were metal caps on them. They reminded me of a well dug on a rural property before a pump house was built up around it.
Do these go down to magma? I wondered. Is this how they plan to deliver water?
I have no idea what you’re talking about. Sindari pawed the bag aside and used a claw to flip the binder open. Another time, I would have laughed at the sight of a tiger reading a notebook, but not now.
It took both hands, and the metal was almost too warm to grip, but I was able to unscrew one of the caps. A blast of noxious hot air flowed out. I stumbled back, waving ineffectively and trying not to choke on the fumes. I rushed to screw the cap back on.
Could I break the pipes somehow? Deny the dark elves access when they were ready? I was surprised they hadn’t already started their deadly experiment.
A drop of water landed on my helmet. I looked up, startled to find a huge framework of metal embedded in the ice. It included a massive funnel with the spout lined up with the pipe. None of that had been visible from the tunnel. I could feel magic up there too, something that hadn’t been noticeable because of all the devices crammed into their packs and crates.
“They’ve got it all set up,” I whispered. They would use magic to melt the ice at whatever rate they needed and funnel the water down below. I drew Chopper. “How hot can you get with that magical word, my friend? Krundark.”
I laid the blade against the seam between the cap and the pipe, hoping I could weld it shut. That would only be a small delay for the dark elves, but maybe it would be enough for Zav and me to find the scientists and get rid of them.
Unfortunately, whatever the melt point was for the alloy they’d used for their pipes was high. Or maybe Chopper could only warm up to a few hundred degrees. I needed a furnace, not a sword, to melt the metal.
I’ve found pictures that may be helpful, Sindari told me, the binder open on the ground, but two dark elves are on their way here from that tunnel.
The two scientists? Dealing with them would be a challenge, but if we could manage it, maybe the rest of the dark elves were less schooled on how to cause an eruption. I tapped my translation charm, so I would understand if they said anything useful when they came in.
Two males.
So at most, one of the scientists. The male, Baklinor-ten.
Or maybe two random dark elves who had been sent to investigate the noise from my explosion. Unfortunately, that seemed most likely. But we could question them if we captured them.
We’re stealthed, I added. Let’s try to ambush them as they come in.
Careful not to
make any noise, I trotted toward the tunnel Sindari had indicated. It was one of four that were large enough for people to walk through. I paused to put the binder on the packs so it would be less noticeable and glanced at a map he’d found of the cave system. It showed the chamber with the lake as well as our chamber, with two circles marking the spots where those pipes were.
I barely held back a groan. According to the map, there were three more chambers with pipes around the complex.
They’re almost here. Sindari was crouching to one side of the entrance.
I glimpsed movement in the tunnel and almost grabbed Fezzik and opened fire before catching myself. Sindari could see me because of our link, but the dark elves shouldn’t be able to see through the magic of my charm.
Or so I thought. As I hurried to take up a position opposite Sindari, one of the dark elves shouted and pointed right at me.
I leaped to the side and out of their view. A crossbow quarrel zipped past, missing my sleeve by a hair.
The dark elves rushed into the tunnel as I reached the ice wall, putting my back to it. They didn’t see Sindari, and he leaped onto the back of the male with the twin-barreled crossbow, another bolt already loaded. It launched as Sindari bore him to the ground. The bolt embedded in the ceiling.
The second dark elf unsheathed a sword and whispered a word in his tongue. His weapon flared with a strange red glow, and powerful magic emanated from the blade. He rushed me, not giving me time to draw Fezzik, so I met his attack with Chopper.
At the first parry, my blade flared with blue light. The dark elf stumbled back squinting but only for a split second. He whispered something else, maybe something that diminished the light, and came after me again.
He was fast—as fast as I would expect from a full-blooded elf—and well-trained. Right away, he put me on the defensive, parrying and giving ground to avoid being cut by that wicked red blade. I swore and wished I’d shot them both when they’d been in the tunnel. Not that it would have worked. They likely had armor under their flowing black robes.
To the side, a burst of magic lit up my senses. Sindari flew twenty feet, and the dark elf he’d attacked snarled and leaped up.
Sindari landed on his feet, facing his opponent. The dark elf’s clothing was shredded, and blood streaked from claw marks on his face, but he flung a second attack on the wave of the first, throwing Sindari back again. He almost struck one of the pipes.
My opponent feinted twice and lunged in, committed to an attack. His blade glided past my defense and nicked me on the jaw. Fiery pain stabbed into my skull as whatever that magic was amplified the intensity of the blow.
“It is not wise to get in a sword fight with a four-hundred-year-old master of the blade,” he said in accented English.
“Now you tell me.” Concentrating fully on him, I blocked his next three combinations of attacks, but he was right. I was outmatched. And he wasn’t giving me the time to try anything else. Like drawing Fezzik and blowing his head off.
Worse, I was already gasping for air. The dark elves had been up here long enough to get used to the altitude. I had not.
“Warriors of this world are weak and poorly trained.” He pressed me back again, his blade blurring before my eyes, it taking all of my focus to read his attacks in time to deflect them. “On our world, someone like you would have been culled from society in childhood.”
“It would’ve been tragic… if the cosmos… missed out on my wit.”
“Your stamina is pathetic. On our world, warriors battle from dawn to dusk to hone their bodies.”
Distant shouts came from somewhere beyond the tunnel they’d used. Concern flashed across his face.
His buddy shouted something to him in their language, my charm translating: “There’s a second dragon!”
For an instant, my assailant’s attacks slowed, and he glanced toward the tunnel.
I flicked my sword at his face to distract him, then hammered a kick into his groin. He stumbled back, though he whipped his blade into place to defend right away. But I wasn’t coming in with my sword. I used the second I’d gained to spring out of his reach and draw Fezzik.
He saw the danger and rushed toward me, but I had time to fire. Three rounds slammed into his chest. A faint metallic clank told me he wore armor under his robe. As he lifted his blade to cut me, I jerked my gun up and fired multiple rounds into his face. He had no armor there. The bullets slammed into both eyeballs and his mouth. His attack never landed.
“That’s how we do it on this world, motherfucker.”
I kept my gloat to a minimum. Sindari was still battling his foe—or trying. The dark elf had recovered from the surprise of the ambush and kept casting magical attacks at Sindari, pushing him back so he couldn’t spring and use fang or claw.
Focused on my tiger ally, the dark elf hadn’t yet realized his buddy was down. Nor did he see me raising Fezzik until it was too late. His head wasn’t armored either, and two bullets blasted into the side of his skull with finality.
Sindari, enraged after being pummeled ruthlessly with magic, sprang at the dark elf before he fell. He bore our adversary to the ground and shredded him to pieces.
I glanced down the tunnel to make sure more dark elves weren’t coming—between my shooting and the grenades, they couldn’t have missed our arrival.
Though I sensed more enemies in the complex—many more—they were busy. Zondia must have found a way through that other blocked tunnel. Good.
Once the second dark elf was dead—very dead—Sindari turned toward me. He recovered his equanimity and sounded calm and regal when he said, Thank you for your assistance, Val.
No problem. It was my turn to help you. Watch the tunnel again, please. I sheathed Chopper, keeping Fezzik in hand, and picked up the binder. We’re going to have to figure out how to break those pipes and then break the ones in the other chambers too.
How we would do that… I didn’t yet know.
32
The ground shuddered again as I poked through the crates, hoping to find something that would let me plug or melt the pipes. My lungs felt like they had cotton in them, the gaseous air worse in this chamber than it had been in the tunnels. I didn’t need a special detector to tell me that I needed to hurry and finish up before I passed out—forever.
Several of the crates held more pipe, shorter pieces. The dark elves must have welded many of them together and drilled them into the ground. There had to be tools somewhere. Wouldn’t they have used blowtorches or something similar when they’d originally strung them together?
My knuckles brushed the binder—it was still open to the map Sindari had found—and I glanced at a few of the pages behind it. One held a diagram of what looked like their pleasure orbs. I grunted, wondering how many the dark elves had placed out there to distract people while ash rained down and lahars destroyed their houses.
I was about to push the binder aside—there was no time now to contemplate the dark elves’ plans, but a newspaper clipping in English caught my eye. It wasn’t about Mount Rainier but about Yellowstone. There were diagrams and photographs and columns of text speculating what would happen if the mega volcano ever erupted. Someone had highlighted chilling words like volcanic winter and ash encompassing the entire planet.
For a moment, I couldn’t move as horror swept over me. Was Mount Rainier only Step One for them? A practice volcano?
“Shit, shit,” I whispered and removed the most damning pages. I folded them and stuffed them in a pocket.
Though terrified by the possibilities, I made myself go back to looking for tools. All I could worry about tonight was stopping them here.
Finally, I found a crate full of tools and snatched out two blowtorches.
Val, Zav spoke into my mind. Our battle is weakening the ice. It will not be safe to be down here much longer.
It’s not safe now. I hurried to the closest pipe and ignited one of the blowtorches.
My sister has gained entrance and is search
ing for the two scientists. I have pushed into the lair but have not encountered them yet. The other dark elves know I seek them and are impeding me.
We’ve killed two males, but I don’t think either of them was Baklinor-ten. I wanted him to know that Sindari and I had been doing things, not wasting time while Zav risked his life, but we’d accomplished so little. We found a map. There are four chambers where they’ve drilled access points down into the volcano. The scientists may be hanging out in one of the chambers.
Find them. There’s not much time. Already the way out may be compromised.
I hadn’t wanted to hear that.
Working on it. Except I wasn’t. I felt guilty being evasive with Zav, but stopping this eruption was the priority for me.
I applied the blowtorch flame to the seam between cap and pipe, hoping to melt them together so the access point couldn’t be opened again. Not easily. With the dark elves’ magic, what if they could simply blow the tops off?
A resounding ker-thunk came from above me. I almost sprang away from my work, anticipating the ceiling would drop, but stubbornness kept me in place. The pipe had started to melt.
The cap flew open, flecks of molten metal striking me. I was wearing gloves, but a bit sizzled on to my bare wrist, and I almost dropped the blowtorch.
The cap on the other pipe had also opened. Drops of meltwater trickled down from the funnels overhead.
“It’s starting,” I whispered.
And if it was starting here, it had to be starting in the other chambers too.
Growling, I pushed at the cap to shove it back into place. Water droplets bounced off the top and spattered my face. Some magic made the cap push back against me, wanting to spring open.
I cursed and climbed atop it. My weight held it in place. I bent awkwardly, applying the blowtorch to the seam where I’d been making progress before. My boots were perilously close to the flame.
Elven Doom (Death Before Dragons Book 4) Page 25