Paul was already far ahead of his men. He showed no sign of fear as he drew his sword and descended upon the enemy. His sword glistened in the moonlight as he clashed with the nearest pirate. Emily watched as the pirates surrounded Paul. Her voice was caught in her throat as she attempted to cry out. The Gloomvale soldiers crashed into the pirates just as they knocked Paul off of his horse. They immediately engaged their enemy in an effort to save Paul. Emily spurred her horse forward in hope of getting there in time to help Paul. Her heart pounded as she closed in on the two groups. She arrived on the scene to find Paul and his men chasing off the remainder of the pirates.
“What’s the rush?” Paul asked as Emily came rushing in.
“I thought you were done for,” Emily said as she dismounted.
“It’ll take more than a band of Pirates to keep me down.”
“You can’t just run off like that.” Emily lightly shoved him.
“What does it matter to you?” Paul asked, holding back a smile.
“I, uh, we can’t stand to lose you,” Emily turned a light shade of pink as she spoke.
Paul nodded and showed no sign whether or not he caught Emily’s true intentions. She wanted to pull him aside and force him to talk about their relationship, but she didn’t know if he thought of her as so. Please say something, she thought as she looked at him. He was staring off into the distance as if lost in thought. She wanted to nudge him or say something to him, but the others were now watching them both intently. They didn’t seem to care that she was annoyed by their presence, in fact, it only seemed to make them laugh. Paul sighed and looked around at those gathered. It seemed as though he was about to address Emily, but then he stopped. She rolled her eyes and slowly mounted her horse. We’ve got more important things to worry about, she thought as she shook her head. Paul had a pained look on his face as he watched her slowly start to move toward their next target.
“Listen, this was more than likely just a raiding party. We’ve got more important things to focus on. They’ve more than likely got more men than that. Let’s move out,” Paul said, seeming somewhat unsure of himself.
*
Cormac opened his eyes, but the darkness remained. He lost track of how much time had passed since the last goblin scream. His magic had sustained him for as long as he could muster. The pressure he felt from the rocks and debris was gone. He closed his eyes and focused on a spell to loosen the rubble around him. Several small shockwaves emanated out of his staff, sending debris flying in every direction. The air that rushed into his lungs was significantly less stagnant than what he had been used to. He began to regain feeling in his body as his stasis spell began to wear off. The amount of pain that rushed into his body nearly caused him to lose consciousness. He pushed the pain away and did what little he could to move toward the fresher air. With a thrust of his staff, he knocked another chunk of rubble out of his way. Cormac sighed as he climbed over the corpses of several goblins. He had heard stories of mages of old using stasis spells to keep themselves safe in such situations, but he had never thought he’d have to use one. The cavern was littered with rubble and dead goblins, but there was no sign of a way out.
Cormac rested his staff against the wall of the tunnel and closed his eyes. He searched his memory desperately for a spell that could get him out of the situation he was in. Without knowing his own exact location, the Archwizard would have a hard time contacting any other mages. His staff lit up as he used it to send a shock through the rock wall. A crack formed in the wall, and Cormac used it to create a small tunnel that he could crawl through. He stumbled out of his magically created tunnel into a larger cave, one that looked somewhat familiar. His head was beginning to spin as he made his way through the cave. He could hear voices in the distance and was unsure whether to move toward them or not. If those speaking were dwarves, he would be saved, otherwise it was highly likely he would be killed. He leaned up against his staff and began to head for the voices. The Archwizard was comforted by the fact that the voices didn’t sound harsh like those of goblins. However, they did not sound like those of dwarves either.
“Quietly, there could be others in the tunnel,” one of the voices said.
“Down here? After that cave-in? Not likely,” another said.
Cormac slammed his staff against the ground, causing the earth to shake to and fro. He stepped out from around the corner and saw a group of gnomes who were huddled together. The spell took a good portion of Cormac’s reserve energy to perform. Their leader stepped forward and pulled his sword. Two others followed his suit and Cormac quickly found himself wishing he hadn’t been so aggressive. He lowered his staff to show that he meant them no harm, but the gesture did little to ease their nerves. The gnomes, though not known for their aggressiveness, tended to dislike others. Archwizard Cormac knew this well and wanted to get a feel for their attitude before addressing them. He had no previous experience with the creatures, but it was well known that they were reclusive.
“Please, I mean you no harm,” Cormac called out as he leaned on his staff.
“Your previous display would tell us otherwise, dwarf,” The leader said.
“My apologies, I had been attacked by goblins and was unsure if you were friendly.”
“Well, we might be friendlier if you dwarves weren’t always so aggressive!” One of the other gnomes yelled.
“I cannot be held responsible for the actions of my people. My wounds leave me in a weakened state, I am truly in need of your assistance,” Cormac looked to the leader as he spoke.
“You may travel with us until you find safety, but we will not harbor you any further than that. We don’t need to be attracting any more attention from the goblins,” The leader looked Cormac in the eyes as he spoke.
Cormac nodded and bowed to the gnome leader. He knew not whether the gesture would garner much of a reaction from the gnomes, but it felt like the right thing to do. The gnomes starting heading out, and Cormac fell in line with them. Not unlike the dwarves, gnomes had an excellent sense of direction when traveling underground. They were also used to seeing in the dark and could go without torches when necessary. This was an attribute that the dwarves shared with them to a smaller degree. There was little else known about the gnomes other than their stature and liking of the deep dark tunnels. Many a dwarf speculated that the gnomes’ greed was greater than that of the dwarves. It was oft said that where the dwarves valued gold and silver above all else, the gnomes too valued gems among the highest of priorities in life. Cormac had heard the stories of gnomes coming up from the depths and using strange mechanical tools to assist in their daily routines. Ector had shared much different tales of the gnomes, claiming that the elves had seen gnomes coming down from the heights of the mountains with similar mechanical tools. Unbeknownst to Ector or Cormac, the humans also had tales of the gnomes. Their stories told of the small creatures sailing the seas with ships of mechanical origin.
“I do not believe I properly introduced myself. I am Cormac, dwarven Archwizard and member of the Wizards,” Cormac gave a short bow as he introduced himself.
“Well met, mage. I am Theros, Protector and Defender of the Deep Paths and Castle Raislor. We are the King’s Protectors,” the gnome leader nodded to Cormac.
“How deep is Castle Raislor?”
“That is not a question that we answer for outsiders. We are a private people for a reason, Master dwarf. Perhaps you will learn to understand us better in the short time that we will be spending together.”
“I would very much like that,” Cormac replied.
The dwarven Archwizard counted himself among the fortunate to get this unusual chance to see into the gnomish culture. He was excited at the possibility of examining the gnomish tools that he had heard stories of. There was a side of the dwarf that was nervous about meeting with the gnomes. They seemed much more proper than he was used to as a dwarf. It was the mage training that he had to fall back on when addressing Theros and his men. In his musin
gs, Cormac had lost track of how far they had traveled or which tunnels they were taking. Rather sly, these gnomes, Cormac thought to himself. He did his best to ignore the pain he was in. The stasis spell’s effects had nearly worn off and with them the pain only increased. It was a small price to pay for undoubtedly having saved his life. He wondered if the gnomes knew how powerful of a magic user they were accompanying.
“Are the gnomes well versed in the ways of magic?” Cormac asked, directing the question at no one in particular.
“In our own way, I suppose. Not to the extent of the tales we hear about the humans though. Gnomes prefer our own brand of Illusion magic. We aren’t the most combat ready of races, Master Wizard. Our magic focuses on avoiding battle whenever possible,” One of the other gnomes answered.
“Surely there are other creatures in these caves, are you not afraid they will invade?”
“We fear it all the time. As Melos said, we are not known for our combat skills. We learned that the hard way. Thankfully there aren’t too many powerful races wandering the deep. Orcs prefer to stay closer to the surface, as do the trolls. We mostly run into goblins or kobolds. It has been centuries since we’ve fought anyone more dangerous than that,” Theros answered the question this time.
“Kobolds? What in the world is a kobold?” Cormac’s dwarven tendencies started to bleed through.
“They are doglike creatures. Not much more dangerous than dogs, but far smarter. Fiercely territorial and easy to bypass. There are many stories of old about how gnomes would lead goblins into kobold ambushes and then disperse and let the two go at it.”
“You mentioned other creatures more dangerous than kobolds, what were you referring to?”
“I wonder if your dwarven tales do the creatures justice. We gnomes were an adventuresome folk at one point in our history. The kobolds gave us little pause and you dwarves were so focused on your gold that we could trade our way around you. Orcs and goblins so feared the dwarven axes that they rarely ventured this deep. We got greedy and wanted more. It was then that we ventured toward the lakes. Subterranean lakes are a sight to see, Master dwarf. We had seen the lakes as a natural boundary for our land, but old King Rumgor had other plans,” Theros paused to order the rest of the company to halt.
“You still haven’t told me the nature of these creatures.”
“I’m getting there. Rumgor ordered the gnomes to build ships, and build ships they did. Fine ships they were, but warships they were not. Our people embarked with the purpose of exploring what was previously thought of as off-limits. One of my ancestors was on the first ship to reach the land on the other side of the lake. What they found was beyond anything any had hoped to find. It was there that the gnomes met a most fascinating race of minotaurs. They were massive creatures, not just by gnomish standards either. Their leader, Gunbar, stood more than ten feet tall. They greeted our ancestors as friends and found our size and demeanor to be amusing. So, naturally, my people traded with them. This brought prosperity to both of our peoples. They taught us a great many things about stone working and their culture. As unbelievable as it sounded, they told tales of a great island at the end of their tunnel system, one that differed from that which we had heard of from dwarves and the other races,” Theros paused to get a look at Cormac, who had his eyebrow raised.
“Another island? I find that rather hard to believe.”
“Aye, I thought you might. It didn’t mean much to us as we’ve not much seen the one above our own tunnels. We believed them though. We had no reason not to. Our relationship prospered for nearly one hundred years until the gnome’s greed once again got the better of them. In the middle of the lake was an island on which there was a strange stone structure. Though I know not why, my people had stayed away from the island for the entire time they had traded with the minotaurs. That all changed when Rumgor’s son, Umgor, decided he wanted the island as his personal island. He took a small band of adventurous gnomes with him and explored the island, a mistake that our people will never forget. They unleashed the wrath of the nagas and what a wrath it was. To this day, we are uncertain as to the exact fate of those who accompanied Umgor. They used our own boats to attack us and nearly destroyed our entire civilization with one attack. Luckily for us, they also decided to attack the minotaurs. It has been hundreds of years since those days, but we’ve never ventured across the lake since then.”
“While your story intrigues me, I was really hoping for a better description of these creatures,” Cormac said, somewhat annoyed.
“And what better description can you ask for than statues built to scale?” Theros asked as they rounded the corner.
Cormac was shocked when he saw the underground city of gnomes. It was far more vast and sprawling than he had ever imagined. They must all live in the same city, he thought as he looked over the town that appeared to stretch out indefinitely. Unlike the dwarves who shaped the stones to their will, the gnomes embraced the natural shapes of the rocks and used them as a part of the city itself. Houses had been built inside the rock formations that littered the area. There was also a good amount of wooden houses that accompanied the stone houses. Though the idea seemed aesthetically unpleasant, the look of the town was actually quite quaint. In fact, it even brought a smile to Cormac’s face as he surveyed the city. A small band of gnomes came out to greet them as they arrived in the city. Though he had heard much of the small creatures that inhabited the town, none of the stories seemed to do them any justice.
A Splintering of Ways
Leon stood on the walls, his cloak blowing in the wind. He pulled the cloak closer around him to fight off the cold. His encounter with Septimus had left him shaken. Rolin and James had been the two most powerful mages he had ever met, but Septimus had single handedly teleported into that room. How does one obtain such power? Leon wondered as he paced along the top of the wall. The guards that were patrolling the wall gave him strange looks, but knew to stay out of his way. He was tired of being seen as nothing more than the king’s advisor. It was time for a change. Leon took a deep breath before turning and walking down the steps toward the keep. If the King kept with his schedule, he would be meeting with some lesser nobles in one of the private meeting areas. The Archwizard knew of all the different meeting rooms. He found them after searching through three such rooms.
“Leon, I was not expecting you for this meeting. I trust that everything is all right?” The King asked as he turned to see who was entering.
“Everything is fine, Henry,” Leon replied.
“You think you can call the King by his name?” One of the others asked.
“I do not act upon presumptions, I act on that which I know. Only a fool would do otherwise,” Leon said, slamming his staff against the ground for emphasis.
“What is the meaning of this, Leon?” The King demanded an answer.
“You may call me Master Leon, Master Wizard, or Archwizard. That goes for all of you. Send out riders, tell the nobles that we will need their armies. We have kingdoms to unite.” Leon spun and walked out of the room.
Leon smiled as he exited the chamber. The King would come around to see him sooner or later, it mattered little at this point. He had already taken step one of his plan, and it was only a matter of time before the others realized it would be foolish to resist. His biggest problems were the Wizards and Galimdor. Nobody in Sardinia would be able to stop him from taking complete control. He turned the corner and headed for the Conclave. I shall set up my new throne here, he thought as he entered the Conclave doors. He called over to several students and ordered them to get everyone gathered in the council chambers. The others nodded and went on their way as he continued on to the council chambers. Time for Leon, Archwizard of Sardinia, to claim his rightful place, Leon thought as he entered the meeting room. He snapped his fingers, and all the torches lit up at once. The room quickly filled as he took his spot on the stage off to the side of the main meeting table.
“Welcome, my friends, I
have called you together because we have been presented with an opportunity unlike anything we’ve seen before. The southern kingdoms are at a crossroads. Galimdor is knocking on their door with a force unlike we’ve seen in many years. If we can get Cardinia to send their army to reinforce Carmalia, it will weaken all three of them. By the time the Galimdorians win or the Carmalians break the siege, Sardinia will have enough strength to unite the southern kingdoms, and take Galimdor for our own. This is the kind of opportunity that will not come along again soon. I will discuss the matter with the king. He will keep control of Sardinia while the Wizards take control of the united kingdom,” Leon raised his staff in the air at the end of his speech.
The Wizards gathered in the council began cheering, most of them were happy at the development, but there were some that weren’t sure of it. Leon knew it would be that way, but it didn’t bother him. He knew that there would be people dissenting, and it invigorated him. It was the first time in his life he was in control and the fact that others disagreed only made it feel more real. His encounter with Septimus made him want to prove his power against any who disagreed. Those closest to him looked at one another with fear in their eyes. They had spent their lives positioning themselves into a place of power, and Leon had done what they wanted in the span of minutes. Leon had his adrenaline pushing him forward, but the others saw it from a different perspective. They lacked the adrenaline and knowledge of magic to make them feel invincible. It was a mixed blessing, for it made them support the mage even more staunchly than they otherwise would have.
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