“You are not going anywhere without us,” Gaidel said.
If Master Almoriz had informed Magister Dagbar of their impending arrival and the Magister sent Dobon to find them, then Ghile was not here. That meant he was somewhere in the Deepwood and the Magister offered the best chance of finding him.
Dobon shook his head and tried to rise again to no avail. “It is not possible. Unhand me.” Gaidel could tell Dobon was trying not to draw attention to himself, which was good. Attention was the last thing they needed.
“Dobon, we need answers. We need to meet with the Magister,” Gaidel said.
Dobon looked around the table and seemed to be taking a mental tally. “I apparently have little choice. Though, you should heed my advice and leave.”
She continued to stare at him, brooking no further discussion.
“You, I can take you. But not the others,” Dobon said.
“I go with Daughter,” Two Elks said.
Gaidel wondered why he could only take her? Weren't they going to the Bastion? Gaidel knew she would not talk Two Elks into staying with the others. She could feel his resolve through the bond. “You will take the two of us.”
Dobon looked at Two Elks and this time deflated visibly. “Yes. Fine, but no more. We must go now.”
Two Elks released the man and Dobon was up, hooded, and moving off through the crowd, with Two Elks on his heels.
She looked to Riff, but he was already nodding his head and motioning her to go. “Yeah, yeah, I know. Stay here, look after this lot and stay out of trouble.”
She wondered if the worry showed on her face. She turned and hastened after the others.
Dagbar leaned back in his chair and squeezed the bridge of his nose. All luck seemed to have deserted him. He had always been a dwarf willing to take risks. Without real risks, one never achieved real rewards. It was one of the base tenets he lived by. He was now taking the biggest risk of his life. But, coming to the realization that the stones in his pile were not a winning set.
He was notified as soon as the cullers left the Bastion, taking their gear with them. He wasn't sure they knew about the stonechosen's arrival, but whatever they knew or planned, it was going to be bad enough they were not going to remain in the Emporium after they played their hand.
Daughter Bosand and her shieldwarden seemed to also know something was going on and had picked the worse time possible to ante in.
Dagbar wondered where the druid or her shieldwarden had gotten their information on the stonechosen's arrival. It was obvious they planned to remain in his presence until this Ghile arrived. And what better way to pass the time than to reiterate their purpose for being there and to remind him of his promises to Mother Brambles.
“Magister Dagbar, are you listening,” Daughter Bosand said.
He had successfully kept the cullers and the druid away from each other, but there had been too many close calls. He wondered how Finngyr would have appreciated one of Daughter Bosand's tongue lashings. The idea of putting them in the same room had its merits.
Dagbar noted the arch of the woman's eyebrows begin creeping up her forehead. He knew he was about to receive one of those lashings himself if he didn't answer quickly.
“Daughter Bosand, I assure you I am well aware of the promises I made to Mother Brambles,” Dagbar said.
Daughter Bosand sat in one of the chairs next to Master Dowynn, her shieldwarden Rachard standing behind her. Dagbar noticed Rachard had not only entered the room first, but chose a seat for Daughter Bosand that allowed him to keep his back against a wall and his face to the door. Even here, in Dagbar's private dining chambers the shieldwarden was wary of an attack.
Dagbar would not lower himself to physical violence against Mother Bramble's envoy, but he had no intention of letting her leave with Ghile Stonechosen, either. He just needed to figure out how to play his hand.
Daughter Bosand seemed placated for the moment, but continued to eye him skeptically. It reminded Dagbar of one of his falcons eyeing a dead mouse and trying to decide if it was worth eating.
“Nevertheless.”
The woman let the word hang there for a moment to make sure it had gathered enough weight.
“She felt it would be best if we took charge of the young stonechosen from here,” Bosand said.
Took charge and escorted him to his death, Dagbar thought. And the boy would probably go, too. He was already under the eye of one druid. How could Dagbar convince him to trust a dwarf instead of his own kind?
The stonechosen would have no reason to trust him other than Master Almoriz's original instruction to seek Dagbar out. There was still the chance Master Dowynn, being a human and sorcerer as well might be able to persuade the boy to listen to them, but would it be enough? Would he be able to speak away from his druid escorts?
“I thought I had proven myself more than enough times to earn your people's trust, Daughter Bosand,” Dagbar said.
“We risk more than any,” Elder Ulbert added in.
Dagbar nodded his agreement, thankful for the support.
Dagbar never liked the way humans were treated. In the cities, they were relegated to the role of servant and manual labor, slaves more like. Oh, dwarves would never use that word and would have been insulted by the term, preferring to slather a layer of decency on it with expressions like overseers and protecting them from themselves. Maybe that was the case in the beginning? Maybe his race began with altruistic motives, but humans were little more than commodities now.
“I should think what happened at Oceanwood-”
Dagbar raise his hand. “No. Please, do not speak of that, Master Dowynn. Some things are best left in the past,” Dagbar said.
The entire Oceanwood settlement had been razed to the ground under the pretense of quelling an uprising. Dagbar knew and respected Oceanwood's late Magister Bellan. He had been Dagbar's mentor and the very one who taught him the ways of the All Mother and finding a balance in all things. But Magister Bellan made too many changes too quickly and forgot the one thing that would keep the wolves of the Empire at bay. Greed.
“All who struggle for change take risks and make sacrifices,” Dagbar said.
Master Dowynn nodded. “The point is we all work towards the fulfillment of the prophecy, Daughter. We sorcerers believed who better than one of our own to be Haurtu's vessel? And Magister Dagbar supported us in our quest…” Master Dowynn continued on, though Dagbar had stopped listening.
His mind drifted back to the days when all those refugees arrived from Oceanwood, little Ashar and Akira among them. The thought of all those who hadn't survived still haunted Dagbar. It was the Oceanwood massacre that convinced Dagbar he needed to act. He always said, every situation, no matter how dire, could still produce something positive.
Unlike his mentor, Dagbar would need to put himself out of reach of those who would try to stop him. Then the idea to seek help in the most unlikely of places, the Elves, came to him.
He already had established the trade agreements that allowed him to harvest limited supplies of wood from the surrounding forest, but there was nothing special about that. Wood was in plentiful supply and not much in demand. Stone, strong and enduring, was the preferred building material of the Empire.
The agreement between Dwarves and Elves to contain the humans and guard any human cities that fell into the ever expanding borders of the Deep Wood was in place well before he became the Magister of the Emporium, dating back to the Great Purge. No, there was nothing that would have protected him from falling victim to the same fate as Magister Bellan.
That was until his prayers to the All Mother had been answered in a way he never would have expected.
All who struggle for change take risks and make sacrifices.
The Alvar's sacrifice had been silverwood. The trees that were sacred to them and protected above all others in the forest. It had been the suggestion of the Goddess Islmur herself that Dagbar be allowed to harvest them.
How some
of the Alvar had raged! But, in the end, they placed their faith in her and almost overnight, as the sole source of the newest and rarest commodity in the Empire, Dagbar's heresies had transformed into, eccentricities.
Dagbar was brought from his reveries by the door opening. All those gathered at the table turned as one. Shieldwarden Rachard had his blade drawn and kite shield off his back and ready before Dobon even entered the room, followed by an exasperated Billy.
“I'm sorry, Magister. He refused to wait-” Billy started to say, before his wide eyes locked on the Shieldwarden Rachard and his sword. The boy usually took delight in announcing guests and probably felt cheated of the chance to announce the two who followed Dobon into the room, all forgotten when he saw the drawn blade.
The druid who entered behind Dobon was probably one of the youngest Dagbar had ever seen. Her shaved forehead held only a smattering of the druid's blue tattoos. Her red hair and pale skin were wet from the storm and glistening. He had no doubt many humans would describe her as beautiful. But her shieldwarden was even more of a surprise. He was a Nordlah plainsmen and a big one at that.
The young druid stopped abruptly. “Patron Sister Bosand! What are you doing here?”
The smile Shieldwarden Rachard wore as he slid his sword back into its scabbard was a sharp contrast to the expression on Daughter Bosand's face.
“More to the point, what are you doing here?” Daughter Bosand said. Though she spoke to the younger druid, her eyes were on Dagbar. “Care to explain this, Dagbar?”
Dagbar felt like he was just caught cheating at a game of stones. He cleared his throat. “To be honest, I have no idea why she is here. Elder Dobon?”
Dobon took one of the towels Billy was handing out and wiped his face. Now that the sword was gone, the boy looked equally horrified with the water puddling on the floor. Dobon looked at the boy and then Dagbar.
“Ah, yes. Thank you, Billy. That will do for the evening. Please close the door behind you,” Dagbar said.
Dobon waited for Billy to pay proper respects and leave, reluctantly closing the door behind him. “May I present Daughter Gaidel and her shieldwarden, Two Elks.”
“Where is the stonechosen?” Daughter Bosand said.
“The stonechosen was not with them. Daughter Gaidel demanded to come with me. They left me little choice, I assure you. My apologies, Dagbar.”
“So much for earning our trust. You were going to meet with the stonechosen alone?” Daughter Bosand said.
She did not wait for an answer before turning her attention back to Daughter Gaidel. “Where is he?” Her authoritative tone brooked no room for debate. She was taking leadership of this situation with Mother Brambles' authority.
Dagbar had to admit, this young druid was handling the situation better than he was. Her initial surprise was already hidden behind a resolute demeanor and squared shoulders.
“The elves have him,” Daughter Gaidel said as if she was a guard making a report.
Dagbar could have laughed at his good fortune. The idea only lasted for a moment, though as the news silenced the room. The Elders were wise enough to mask their emotions, but all of them cast glances at Dagbar. The two druids had locked eyes and Dagbar could see the internal struggle in each of them. Daughter Bosand pushed down first shock and then anger while Daughter Gaidel dealt with fear. Behind each, their shieldwarden's were eyeing the other and looked ready to take the struggle to a more physical place.
Daughter Bosand broke the silence. When she spoke, her words were slow and even. “You were given one task. You were to see him safely here.”
Daughter Gaidel's forehead and cheeks took on a shade that almost rivaled her hair. Oh, this one had fire, Dagbar could tell. He took an instant liking to her. She also knew when to control that fire, apparently as her answer was equally controlled.
“As you say, Patron Sister Bosand.”
“Then why did you fail?”
The word had the same effect as a slap. Interestingly, it was her shieldwarden, Two Elks, who seemed more hurt. Dagbar could see there was a story here and he would bet it was a good one.
“It, it is complicated,” Daughter Gaidel said.
Daughter Bosand only stared. Dagbar noted Shieldwarden Rachard giving the younger druid an encouraging nod and a quick wink.
“During our journey, Ghile was contacted by another stonechosen, a girl named Akira, she-”
“Akira! Dagbar, could it be?” Dowynn said. He was forward in his chair, all propriety forgotten.
“She is still aware, Dagbar. Trapped! What have we done?” Dowynn said. The look on Dowynn's face caused Dagbar's heart to ache. It was times like this that Dagbar thought he understood why his race thought emotions were something to be controlled.
“Dowynn, enough. We did what we must,” Dagbar said.
“What do you know of this, Magister Dagbar?” Daughter Bosand said.
“Patron Sister Bosand, there is more. This Akira, she said Magister Dagbar is not to be trusted. Her brother and her were hurt and in the Fallen City. It is why Ghile ran away from us,” Gaidel said. She cast accusing eyes at Dagbar.
“In that I must agree,” Daughter Bosand said.
“Dagbar?” Dowynn's voice was pleading.
“Elder Dobon, Elder Ulbert. Please escort Master Dowynn to his rooms,” Dagbar said.
That he had supported the sorcerers' plan to have one of their own become stonechosen was well known to the Druids, but how bad things had gone was not.
But, it was not only his relationship with the Druids that was at stake. That Akira was a stonechosen they had subdued and that Dowynn's apprentice had fled with her to the Fallen City was not something he wanted known. But, that it had inadvertently caused the attacks and plagued on the settlement and the new animosity of the Alvar and thus the ending of silverwood trade most definitely wasn't something he wanted known. Just when he thought luck had returned to him.
Daughter Bosand rose from her chair.
“Daughter Bosand, please. Stay. I-”
“No, Magister Dagbar, I think I've seen and heard enough,” Daughter Bosand said.
Dagbar couldn't believe she was just leaving. If Ghile Stonechosen was with the Alvar, then there was a chance he would listen to reason. Dagbar needed to speak to him, try to explain. “Wait. You need my help. If he is with the elves I am your best chance of reaching him.”
“That is not what things in their present situation would have me believe, I'm afraid. I have not spent my time here sitting idly in my room, I can assure you. Your relationship with the elves is strained at best. You know of their pact with your kind concerning the stonechosen. The boy is lost.”
“But-”
“But, nothing,” Daughter Bosand said, “It is obvious this Ghile Stonechosen is beyond our reach and there is another stonechosen somewhere in the Fallen City, which you were apparently not only aware of, but involved in. Mother Brambles needs to be made aware of this new information. Come, Sister Gaidel, we are leaving.”
Daughter Bosand and Shieldwarden Rachard made their way around the table. The elders were still trying to comfort and lead Master Dowynn out, but he seemed on the verge of hysterics and their mumbled attempts to calm him were growing louder.
Daughter Gaidel, looked taken aback. “What? What about Ghile?” She had not moved and Daughter Bosand stopped in front of her.
“On Mother Brambles' orders we were to escort him to the Nordlah Plains where he would be dealt with by the true Stonechosen, Growling Bear,” Daughter Bosand said.
“Dealt with?” Gaidel said. “Who is Growling Bear?” She looked between Daughter Bosand and Two Elks.
“I know Growling Bear,” Two Elks said, “Strong warrior. Much hate for dwarves.”
Dagbar watched the emotions play across Daughter Gaidel's face. It was obvious she was worried about Ghile's fate. If she thought Dagbar was not to be trusted, it was likely Ghile did as well. He would need to convince her of his cause and enlist her aid in convi
ncing Ghile.
“Daughter Bosand, listen to reason, you cannot put your faith into this Growling Bear. He will kill Ghile and take the humans to war. Is war with the dwarves what Mother Brambles wants? There is another way,” Dagbar said.
“It is not my decision to make, nor yours. This conversation is over,” Daughter Bosand said.
Daughter Gaidel put her hand to her ear as if in pain. Her face took on a focused expression.
“By the All Mother! Riff! How?” Daughter Gaidel said.
“What is it?” Daughter Bosand said.
“Riff, Master Almoriz's apprentice, he is speaking to me.”
“Wind Whispering,” Dagbar said.
“Riff! Riff?” Gaidel's face paled.
Two Elks was already turning towards the door.
“He cannot hear you. What do you know?” Dagbar said.
Daughter Gaidel turned to follow Two Elks even as she answered.
“Cullers!”
Riff loved to entertain a crowd. The hearth fire felt warm on his back, but nowhere near as nice as the applause he received with each enchantment he performed.
He could understand why entertainers, like the one sat on the stool across the way glaring at him, did this for a living. The woman had long since stopped playing her lute and singing. Riff hadn't intended on depriving the woman of her livelihood. It had all started out innocently enough.
It hadn't taken long for Lotte and him to grow bored. He could only take so much of the boys hard to understand conversation and not even the dark dwarven stout Two Elks had left unguarded could help with that. He had only thought to help pass the time. Surely Gaidel could not begrudge him that?
At first he had simply made the beer in his mug flow upwards into one he held upside down above it. But once Lotte had gotten used to that he questioned how far apart Riff could place the cups. It was when Riff stood on the table and stretched the second cup above his head that things became interesting.
Apparently, standing on the table was how entertainers announced they were about to perform at this settlement. His upwards flowing beer trick had been answered with the sounds of a few coins landing on the table. It had progressed from there.
Time of the Stonechosen (The Soulstone Prophecy Book 2) Page 25