Fortunately at that moment there was a knock on the door. Shandon stopped his angry pacing and glared at the unoffensive portal.
“Come in!” he barked.
The door opened and the seneschal peered in, obviously wondering why the king was upset.
“Ah Ragar,” Shandon said.
He took a few deep breaths and forced a smile.
“Come in, please.”
The dwarf bowed and waved at someone outside in the hallway.
Several servants came in carrying trays. There were some low tables scattered around the library and these were pulled closer to the fireplace and used to set the trays on.
Once they had unloaded the refreshment, the workers bowed to the king and swept out of the room quickly, perhaps sensing some tension in the air.
“I've brought you ale, tea, fresh biscuits with butter, a bowl of fruit harvested just this morning and assorted cheeses,” Ragar said as he pointed at each tray. “Is there anything else you need, my lord?”
“No, that will be fine. Thank you, Ragar.”
The seneschal bowed, not quite as low as the servants had, and left the room, closing the door behind him with a firm click.
“You're the one in need,” Shandon said to Simon with a rather tired smile. “I just need some ale to improve my mood.”
Simon got up and walked over to the trays to load up a plate.
“As long as the ale improves your mood and doesn't make you cranky. It's had that affect on me from time to time.”
There was a small cask on one of the trays and the king filled up a tankard from it. He took several long swallows and refilled it.
“Has it? How odd. It always makes me rather jolly.”
He sat down with a thump and nodded at the door.
“Too jolly sometimes, according to Ragar. But then he was always a little stiff and formal, even when we were children.”
Simon sat down with his plate on his knees and began eating.
“You've known him since childhood?” he asked around a mouthful of cheese.
“Not known, exactly. We met back then but I hadn't seen him in years, not until his name came up when I was searching for a new seneschal. The previous holder of that post passed away at a rather advanced age. Delightful old gentleman, he was. Anyway, Ragar put his name in for the position and I decided to take him on. He's been exemplary ever since.”
He took another deep swallow of ale.
“Still a stick in the mud though,” he added with a thoughtful belch.
Simon snickered, silently agreeing with the king's assessment.
When he'd finished eating, the wizard opted for tea over ale; he knew that the alcohol would probably put him to sleep and he still needed to speak with Shandon.
“Thanks,” he said as he sipped the hot tea. “I needed that.”
“My pleasure. Now let's get down to business.”
“Please.”
The king got up, refilled his mug and walked over to the fireplace. He rested his shoulder against the marble facade and stared intently at Simon.
“You know that your people are welcome to stay here as long as they like; traitors and malcontents be damned.”
The wizard nodded.
“Good. Then you should also know that most of them don't want to.”
Simon frowned at that statement.
“What do you mean they don't want to? Why not?”
Shandon shrugged and waved vaguely at the room around them.
“Living underground does not suit everyone. In fact, I would dare say that only my people are happy staying out of the open air of the surface for long periods. Your people, many of them anyway, are becoming more and more depressed the longer they stay with us.”
“But what about the threats above us? The necromancers and the undead, not to mention the dracoliches? Those are the reasons that they are down here in the first place.”
“Ah, but you see, that's their dilemma. If they stay with us, they will continue to sink into apathy and sadness. It's a long, slow spiral but I am informed that it is relentless and unavoidable for many of them. However, if they leave and head back to the surface, they face many dangers; some of which they simply are not ready to confront.”
Simon gave it some thought. It hadn't actually occurred to him that the refugees would be wilting like flowers in the dark by staying in Kingstone. It made sense though; he remembered that by the time he had left after his last stay with the dwarves, he couldn't exit the underground fast enough. Something about uncounted tons of rock hanging over his head day in and day out had begun to suck the life out of him. Or maybe he just needed to feel the sun and look up at the open sky.
In any event, he could understand people's anxiety. But to go above ground now?
“It's suicide,” he said bluntly. “They aren't ready to confront the evil forces that are just waiting for us to show our faces up there.”
Shandon drank some ale and belched gently.
“Perhaps they are, lad. That paladin, Liliana, and the mage, Tamara, seem to think so. Or at least they've hinted that they have a plan of sorts. But I believe that they have been waiting for you to appear to flesh it out.”
The king grinned roguishly and winked at Simon.
“I don't believe I've ever seen two women so eager to see a man before. You might have an in there, my friend.”
Simon felt his ears getting hot.
“It's not like that,” he protested. “We're just friends, Shandon. But how did they even know I was coming? I couldn't reach anyone when I tried before I started down here. In fact, that's basically the reason I'm here in the first place.”
The king drained his tankard and put it down on a table. He kicked an ember back into the fireplace and then sat down across from Simon again.
“I gathered as much,” he said. “And they didn't know you were coming, at least not until I informed them that you had entered the city. Perhaps I should have said that they were waiting for additional magical support before pursuing whatever mad scheme they may have hatched. You would seem to qualify.”
Simon nodded and finished his tea.
“I suppose I do. Not down here though. I'm as powerless under all of this rock as I was before my Change.”
“It will come back quickly once you return to the surface, laddie,” Shandon assured him. “Too bad you don't have any dwarvish blood in you; our magic-users aren't affected by the weight of the underground around them.”
He scratched the back of his neck and frowned in thought.
“Not that we give them many opportunities to exercise their powers. But they still have them nonetheless.”
“Do they? That's interesting. I wonder why? Is it their dwarven physiology or...”
The king yawned hugely and waved off the question, clearly disinterested.
“That's a question for wizards, not rulers. Now, I'd say it's time for you to get some sleep. When you wake up, you will meet with the human leaders and make whatever plans you see fit.”
He waggled at cautionary finger at Simon.
“Just remember, while I will support whatever decision you all make, if you choose to leave, I cannot guarantee your safety beyond the city walls. We may have cleansed the place of traitorous scum, but evil stalks the darkness out in the deep and on the surface above. Think long and hard before you make any choices you may come to regret.”
The king stood up and Simon joined him. They walked to the door and opened it. The seneschal was leaning against the opposite wall, arms folded. As the door opened, he stood up straight and waited for Shandon to speak.
“Ragar, please take our guest to his room. He is to be guarded closely while he is here.”
Shandon looked at Simon wryly.
“We don't want to risk any more 'mishaps', now do we?”
“Of course not, my lord,” the seneschal replied. “Although I believe that all of the traitors were captured.”
“So do I. But one can never b
e too careful. Simon, sleep well. We'll speak again in the morning.”
Shandon extended his hand and the wizard shook it warmly.
“I owe you my life,” he stammered.
“Nay, I am still in your debt for what you did for me and my people,” the king told him. “That is a lifelong debt that can never be repaid. Now, be off with you. I still have several tasks to attend to, not least of which is having a conversation with the leader of our captured rebels.”
He waved and turned away, marching off quickly. His bodyguard followed closely and Simon watched them all disappear around a far corner.
Simon was left along with Ragar, a female servant and two royal guardsmen.
“Please follow me,” the seneschal told him. “I've had a bedchamber made up for you while you met with the king. I hope that you will find it comfortable.”
“Thanks,” the wizard said as he covered up a yawn. “I feel like I could sleep on a bed of stone.”
“Oh, I think that we can do better than that,” Ragar answered, sounding a little amused for the first time. “Nothing but the best for a friend of my lord.”
Chapter 16
After sleeping like a rock, Simon woke up the next morning anxious to see his friends again. He had only the king's word that Tamara, Liliana and the others were well and, while he trusted Shandon, he felt the need to see for himself. Besides, he missed them very much.
A new pale yellow robe was laid out for him, as well as socks and underwear, when he came out of the washroom after a bath. Servants seemed to come and go like ghosts in the castle and they had also laid out a hearty breakfast. He was disturbed that he'd heard nothing when they had entered his room, but his hunger overcame his concerns and he ate with gusto.
When he was finished, two warriors who were waiting for him outside of his apartments led him back to the small library which was apparently one of the king's favorite places in the castle.
Shandon was sitting by the fireplace, frowning at a scroll as he read it. The curtains on the window were open and rays of artificial bluish light lit up the room.
“Ah, here you are,” the king said as Simon walked in.
He rolled up the scroll and tucked it into a pouch as he stood up, armor ringing musically.
“How did you sleep?”
“Very well, thanks,” Simon replied with a grin. “And breakfast was great.”
The king looked pleased and waved the wizard out into the hallway.
“Good. I'm happy that you were well taken care of. I like that color on you as well; yellow suits you. Now, let's reunite you and your friends, hmm?”
They set off down the hallway, retracing the route that they had taken the night before. A contingent of a dozen guards surrounded them but Shandon spoke easily with Simon as if they weren't even there.
I guess you get used to them after a while, the wizard thought. But I doubt that I ever could.
Unlike the previous evening, the streets that morning were bustling with dwarves coming and going. They moved respectfully out of the way of the king and the royal guard when the party passed, some bowing while others simply nodded.
Simon saw no sign of anger or resentment on any of the faces of the ordinary citizens; instead, Shandon seemed to be not just respected but actually liked by his subjects, with many calling out greetings as they passed by.
The king responded jovially, waving and smiling to everyone who called out to him and occasionally saying something back in dwarvish. Simon didn't know what he was saying but he guessed by people's laughter that some of the king's comments were jokes.
“Your people like you,” he said to Shandon at one point as they passed a small market.
People were waving and the king returned the gesture.
“I don't know about 'like',” he replied. “But considering the alternatives, I suppose I'm the lesser of other evils.”
He looked up as Simon with a crooked grin.
“I have no siblings and no children, so if I fell, the throne would end up being contested by a lot of nobles. It could lead to civil war, which is the last thing my people need right now. I'd say that most of these jovial greetings are their way of expressing the hope that I don't die any time soon.”
Simon had to chuckle at the cynical comment.
“I think you're selling yourself short, my friend,” he replied quietly. “I'm certainly no expert on your race, but these people look genuinely happy to see you, the person, not you the 'best alternative to war'.”
Shandon's smile faded and he looked around thoughtfully at the crowd beyond his escort's perimeter.
“Maybe you're right,” he said after a few moments. “I'd like to think so, but dwarves, like humans, are a complicated people. Their motivations are hard to judge sometimes. Ah well, I suppose I'll just enjoy the fact that they aren't throwing rotten vegetables at me.”
Both of them laughed at that and the journey continued.
The human section of the city wasn't that far from the palace. It only took the group about fifteen minutes to reach it and Shandon had to tell Simon when they had arrived, because it looked the same as the rest of the city.
They entered a large square with a fountain splashing merrily in the center of it. They stopped and the escort spread out warily as the king gestured at the buildings around them.
“Here we are,” he said. “The area of the city reserved for your people.”
Simon did a slow turn, examining the neighborhood and looking for any signs of life. But there was no movement and no people to be seen.
“Where is everybody?” he asked Shandon. “The place looks deserted.”
The king chuckled and pointed at something over Simon's shoulder.
The wizard followed his gesture and saw a group of people exiting what looked like a small apartment building.
“I sent word that, until we arrived, they should be cautious of any large groups of dwarves, just in case they were members of the rebel group that was targeting humans. I suppose they saw us approaching and decided to play it safe.”
A handful of people walked toward them and Simon smiled broadly as he recognized some old friends.
“Simon!” a large armored man bellowed with a wave.
It was Malcolm. The wizard would know that handsome black man anywhere. The warrior was literally the tallest and strongest person that Simon had ever met. He was also one of the gentlest.
Beside him was his partner, Aiden, who was almost as large. Born of Korean parents, the warrior was quite good looking too, but much quieter than Malcolm. They made a good team.
Both of them were wearing armor and had weapons on their hips and both were grinning at him.
Behind them were three other humans, of more average height. Two of them were wearing robes similar to Simon's and one was clad in glittering silver armor.
“Hey everyone!” the wizard called out.
Tamara, Sebastian and the paladin, Liliana, waved in return and then the groups merged.
Simon spent the next few minutes speaking to each of his friends in turn. Everyone initially spoke over each other as they greeted Simon and Shandon and there was a lot of relieved laughter mingled into the conversations.
Malcolm almost knocked the wizard off of his feet as he slapped him on the back. As usual, Aiden was able to save him from a fall and he berated the big man while Simon caught his breath.
“How many times am I going to have to tell you not to do that?” Aiden snapped. “Spell-casters are fragile, you big lug. And you just might anger him enough to fry you inside of your armor one day.”
Malcolm looked so remorseful that Simon began laughing while he was still out of breath. It was painful and hysterically funny at the same time.
Tamara and her brother both hugged him as they said hello, a gesture that surprised the wizard. Sebastian had always been the warmer, more open member of the pair, while his sister tended to keep people at arm's length. Her embrace definitely let Simon know how much he
'd been missed.
And finally Liliana shook his hand with both of hers while they exchanged searching glances. They had fought together against evil more than once and words weren't really necessary between them.
After a few more minutes of friendly chatter, the king clapped his steel gauntlets together loudly enough to get everyone's attention.
“Sorry to interrupt this happy reunion,” Shandon told them. “But I have to get back to the palace. Affairs of state and all that rot. Simon, when all of you reach a consensus on what you intend to do next, send word and we'll meet again, all right?”
“Of course we will,” the wizard replied.
He and the king shook hands again and the escort marched off. Shandon waved one last time before they turned a corner and disappeared from sight.
“Well, here we are, together again,” Tamara said in the sudden quiet of the square.
Only the chuckling water of the fountain could be heard and Simon wondered out loud where the rest of the human refugees were.
“Still in bed, most of them,” Liliana told him with a smile. “We've all been awake for the past twenty-four hours or more, worried about a possible attack by those traitors we were warned of. Fortunately, a short time before you and the king got here, we got word that the danger had passed and we told everyone to get some rest. It's been hardest on the few of us who have children, as you might have guessed, but they'll be fine once they get some sleep.”
“Come along, my friend,” Malcolm rumbled in his rich bass voice. “We have a designated meeting room set up and I think that we all would welcome a chance to sit down and talk more comfortably.”
“Sounds good to me,” Simon replied with some relief. “I'm really not as fit as I thought I was, plus these new boots that the dwarves made are killing me.”
There was a general laugh from everyone and the big man and Aiden led the way out of the square.
Simon found himself walking next to Tamara and he looked at her curiously.
“Shandon said that some of you are thinking of leaving the city and heading back to the surface. Is that true?”
The mage was wearing a somber, dark brown robe; an unusual choice for her. The wand that Simon had discovered in a hidden cache and given to her hung from her belt and she stroked it unconsciously as she walked.
The Dragons of Bone and Dust (Tales from the New Earth Book 7) Page 19