by Josh Vogt
Gromir stared as his guards dropped around him. He pushed up from his chair, reaching inside his robe, but froze when Akina stepped in front of him. They stared at one another, her trying to figure a fitting hello, him switching from disbelief to shock to fear.
"You... you..." He flailed and tried to push her away."You can't be here! No!"
He froze as Izthuri's blade caught under his throat.
"Quiet," she said."Yes?"
"Akina? Who—? What—?"
Akina grabbed his beard and growled."We're leaving. So much as cough on the way out and I'll bleed you myself, hm?"
Once she was sure Izthuri had him in hand, she went to Brakisten and shook him. For a strained moment, she feared him a corpse after all. Then he spluttered and squinted up at her. He stunk worse than the caligni tribe, his hair and beard snarled, his cracked lips bleeding as they quivered.
"Kina?" He groaned and clutched his stomach."Been having such a nightmare."
She laid a hand on his back."It's going to be all right, Brak. Time to go home."
Shouts erupted close by. Akina snapped her head up to see Gromir flinging throwing axes at a retreating Izthuri, who shifted around the attacks. The other caligni dashed in from the side, sword poised; Gromir whipped a hand out at the fighter, who went down in a spray of icy shards. The caligni's body contracted, as if he breathed in—and then the rags exploded, sending a dazzling burst of light through the area.
Akina tried to shield her face with an arm, but hot needles pricked her eyes and bloomed into white-red circles that blotted out all else. When her vision cleared, Izthuri and the caligni caster had disappeared. Gromir appeared to be recovering from a similar daze as he turned circles, throwing axes poised.
Akina twitched as a gray-robed figure appeared beside her. For half a heartbeat, she imagined Ondorum had arrived. Then she recognized the bald and beardless duergar she'd seen from the tower. Up close, the duergar woman had lean features and silvery eyes. She bowed, fist pressing against fist.
Akina snarled and swung her maulaxe. The duergar wove aside and let the weapon blur past. Akina spun and cut at the woman's head, but the duergar ducked and then stepped in and struck Akina's chest with an open palm. Akina staggered back several feet, while the other woman remained poised. Contemplative, even.
Not Ondorum, but she moved and fought like him. What in the blazing Hell?
One second, the duergar stood a few steps away. The next, she closed the distance and slapped Akina across the face, like one would an insolent child. Akina barked and tried to headbutt her. The duergar raised a hand to catch the brunt of her helm, and then made a twisting motion, diverting Akina's momentum to spin her around like a toy. A fist rammed into Akina's side with unbelievable force, even through her armor.
The maulaxe flew from her hands as she dropped to her knees, dazed by that single blow. She tried to regain focus, coherent thought dancing just outside of reach. A part of her knew she was vulnerable, but couldn't gather the wits to do anything about it.
"Stop!" someone cried."Don't kill her."
A shove, and Akina fell over backward. The cavern ceiling glowed above her, and she stared up with blank eyes, wondering what had just happened. Figures moved nearby. Rough hands dragged her back to her knees. She started to struggle, but a ringing slap on the back of the head scrambled thoughts of resistance again. Scowling duergar clustered around her.
A voice boomed."Bring her."
As they lifted her to her feet, Akina's eyes fell on Gromir standing off to one side. The dwarf ducked his head but followed as the duergar marched her over to the base of one of the forge stairways. The caligni's noise had died off at some point, and the soldiers and guards filed back to their positions around camp. Many stared at her, expressions promising death. She returned the favor.
They thrust her before the horned beetle mount of the commanding duergar. Soldiers gathered, but their leader hollered in the duergar tongue and waved most of them away. This left a few guards at his back, the robe who'd downed her, and Gromir.
Akina called over to the other dwarf."Would've brought a few kegs if I'd known you were holding a party. You've been rude, not introducing everyone."
This elicited a chuckle from the head duergar, who spoke in smooth Dwarven."You may call me Commander Vaskegar." He gestured to the hairless, gray-clad woman."You've met Ularna."
Ularna pressed fist to fist again, while Akina glowered. Vaskegar swept down off the beetle and handed its reins to an attendant. As he approached, she confirmed his armor was bone, linked and interlocking, possibly reinforced with bolts and plates on the inside. A bone circlet formed from what looked like ribs adorned his bald brow. A jawbone had been fixed atop this, rimmed with broad, flat-topped teeth.
"Nice crown," she said."You king around these parts?"
He swept the piece off and held it up so the forge light turned it a ruddy orange."Do you like it? I fashioned it from my father's remains after defeating him in armed combat."
"Bit different from how we honor our dead."
"True." He frowned."You stick them pretty boxes and hide them away in worthless catacombs where they wither into dust."
"That's not—"
"And then you decorate your halls with their false faces and forever wonder if they approve of your every word and action for the rest of your haunted lives." He replaced the crown."I know my father respected me in the end, finding I was the stronger of us. I know he died proud, and I honor him in return for the strength he bestowed on me."
He turned and sauntered away. His axe blades gleamed, seemingly formed from semi-translucent pink quartz, with deeper red veins working through them.
"Gromir."
At his name, the dwarf hopped over without delay. It sickened Akina to see him acting as a servant to this duergar."Yes, Commander?"
Vaskegar turned his head enough to reveal the glint of one amused eye."Is this her?"
"I, ah, that is to say..." Gromir deflated."Yes, my lord."
"How did she get here?"
"I have absolutely no idea, my lord. I never would've conceived of this possibility."
"Your note was helpful," Akina said."Selvia, too. Remember her? Pretty little thing, Gromir, especially with her throat slit."
Gromir paled, but Vaskegar's expression pinched."Care to clarify?"
"She means Gollvara."
"Ah." That brought recognition to the duergar's eyes."You killed her?"
"Nullick did, actually. After he told me your name." Akina shrugged."Whatever deal you had with them, those lunatics got a little greedy."
Vaskegar scowled."Seems I need to remind them of their place."
"I already did. You owe me one."
"Hm." The commander turned to Gromir."Tell me again why Gollvara remained behind while you returned ahead of schedule? It seems your mishandling of our arrangement got her killed."
Gromir shuffled in place."As I said before, my lord, expediency has ever been my merit. I didn't have time to arrange details on my end, so I left Gollvara with instructions to continue that farce of a business in my absence. I can't understand why she would've felt it necessary to do otherwise. Akina did not need to be here to facilitate this next stage."
Vaskegar's bone gauntlets ended in metal hooks on the knuckles, and he stroked these through his beard."I suppose that will remain a mystery, won't it? Hers wasn't a deserving death, but few of us get any say on the when or where of our passing." He clasped hands before him and studied Akina."Have you ever wished you could control your destiny?"
Akina snorted."Oh. You're one of those."
"One of what?"
"The type who thinks they're destined for something. Figure you see yourself as a hero, chosen by Droskar to bring glory to the Darklands."
The commander's laugh rang out."Of course, a dwarf would fix on the word destiny. It's such a grandiose and yet vague word. Promising you everything in glittering piles, while leaving plenty of room to collapse beneath the wei
ght of your hubris. No, the word you should've focused on is control." His gauntlet creaked as he made a fist."Absolute, undeniable control. Wouldn't that be a marvelous thing? It's a progression, you see." He scraped a knuckle-hook down the bridge of his nose."We start believing glory is the ultimate goal, however we define that. Maybe through the people we rule or in the deeds we accomplish. Then we realize reaching glory requires power, in some form or another. It may come in strength of arms, in the sharpness of one's tongue, in the application of arcane knowledge—or a mixture of all these and more. So we all seek power, whether we admit it or not. Because why wouldn't we? Why shouldn't we?"
He unhooked one of the axes from his back and brought it around to test the edge with a thumb."Most of us remain in this state our entire lives, trying to accrue power, losing it, regaining it, wielding it... And for a time, it might suffice, because we're only among others who crave and pursue the same thing. We're rather like blind mole rats, each trying to carve out the bigger, longer, broader tunnel through the filth."
"Want to hear what I did to a mole recently?" she asked.
He ignored her and continued on. Akina glanced around, seeing how the others took this. Gromir, in particular, looked fascinated, while Ularna held the same placidity as before. Did the woman ever blink?
"Here's what separates certain of us from the rest of the rabble." Vaskegar caught her chin in the top crook of an axe blade and lifted her eyes to his."Control. When power is not controlled, it is wasted. Uncontrolled flames become a consuming fire. Uncontrolled waters become a drowning flood. Uncontrolled hammering on the anvil can shatter the piece."
She hacked and spat in his face."Uncontrolled tongues become fleshy catapults. Am I learning yet?"
Vaskegar stilled as the wad of mucus tracked down one cheek. Then he eased the axe back into place in its straps. He wiped the spittle off his face with his thumb, and then popped the thumb into his mouth. Once he sucked it clean, he reached out and swiped his own saliva under both her eyes. She tried to pull away, but her captors held her firm.
"You struggle with control." He leaned in until his nose almost touched hers."It rages just beneath your surface. A never-ending tempest threatening to shake you to pieces."
Akina scowled, disliking this stone-shattered bastard talking about her in such intimate terms."Exactly how drunk is Gromir when he talks about me?"
Vaskegar's laugh boomed out again."She has a fine spirit, Gromir. I commend you for desiring one who is obviously far beyond your grasp."
Gromir flinched."Thank you, my lord?"
The commander studied Akina a little longer before pursing his lips."You're a chaotic element here. Chaos can be entertaining, but it's also disruptive by nature. The sooner I remove you, the sooner progress can be restored."
As Vaskegar reached for his axes again, Gromir stuck himself in front of Akina and bowed.
"My lord, please reconsider. Akina isn't entirely without reason. Despite her brutish behavior, which I apologize for, she is canny and possesses strength we could use. Let me show her the grandeur of what will be accomplished here. She may be convinced to aid us."
Akina considered snapping a kick into Gromir's kidneys, but as his simpering stood between her and a beheading, she figured it wise to let him yammer on a bit.
"Oh?" Vaskegar raised shaggy eyebrows."Despite your past efforts, you think you could influence her still?"
"At least let me try. I deser—" Gromir swallowed at the commander's warning look."I respectfully request the chance, given my rather vital contributions to this effort."
"If you think you can contain her, it'd be my pleasure to see such a feat." Vaskegar shouted commands to his guards, who moved into position at the bottom of the nearest forge stairway."Go on, then. Show her around. Explain."
Her captors shoved her forward after Gromir, who headed up the stairs. They stopped beneath the main arch which formed the stylized mouth of the dwarven face on this side. The forge blazed beyond, and for the first time, Akina got an idea of what Izthuri meant by the place being hungry. With the raging fires kept going by the elementals and casters, it felt like a living thing, seeking to consume anything thrown into its maw. At this angle, the giant anvil rose to Akina's chest, and looked more like a broad altar than any functional workstation. A row of lumpy objects lay on top, but Gromir stood between her and them.
At Gromir's indication, the guards released her and backed off a few paces. She noticed Ularna standing in the shadow of a column, but ignored her presence for the time. Instead, she jabbed a finger at the other dwarf.
"You've got ten breaths before they peel me off you."
He held hands up."Akina, please, try to be reasonable. Are you so set on death that you'd force Vaskegar's hand before even trying to understand what's happening in this place?"
"What's to understand? You're working for the duergar and going to use my brother in some obscene ritual because this lord of yours has probably offered you all the power or wealth you want in exchange. Am I close? If so, let's skip to the part where I make you swallow your own teeth."
"There are two things you need to see before you make any rash decisions."
"Five breaths, Gromir."
He sighed."Do you have any idea what this place is?"
"Dwarven ruins," she said."I may not be a scrollsnake like you, but I can figure some things out on my own."
He pointed up."But don't you see? Haven't you noticed? Yes, it's a fantastic set of ruins, worthy of a lifetime's study. But it isn't just any dwarven settlement. It's yours."
She squinted one eye."Mine?"
He kept pointing, and she followed his gesture. Then she spotted it. There, just visible on the sloping brow of the dwarf's stone face, sat the Fairingot sigil, a rectangle with a blazing eye in the center. He singled out a few other carvings on the walls ringing them, carved into the stones forming the forge foundation.
"This is your family's original home," he said."Your ancestry traces itself all the way back here. And your ancestors didn't just found this settlement; they ruled it. Your family comes from a noble bloodline!"
In spite of everything, the words sent a thrill through Akina. Yet she refused to be distracted. She crossed her arms and glared."So?"
He looked taken aback."What do you mean?"
"So what, Gromir? You think this changes anything? Maybe my family did come from here, but what's that matter now? Right now, you're betraying our people. Right now, I'm being threatened by this duergar you serve. Right now, my brother lies over there looking half dead. So what are you going to do right now to fix all this?"
He wrung his hands."That's the second thing I need to show you." He stepped aside and beckoned her toward the anvil, but raised a finger as she got close."Whatever you do, don't touch the altar. Truly, don't. It will kill you instantly."
She stepped forward and craned her neck as he waved to the items arranged on the anvil. She finally could make out a skeleton, laid out from toe knuckles to skull. A dwarven skeleton.
Words choked out of Gromir.
"This is... these are your mother's bones."
Chapter Twenty-Four
The Forge
Akina trembled in place and couldn't stop her fingers curling into fists."If you ever wanted a quick death at my hands, Gromir, you've found the perfect words."
"Can you stop with the pointless threats for once and just listen?"
She moved closer, but he blocked the way."Don't! I swear, you'll die the instant you touch the altar."
She started to grab for him, to throw him aside. Out of the corner of one eye, she saw Ularna's gray form slide into view. Her expression remained calm as she stared over at Akina, but it had an expectant edge, as if intrigued by what would happen if the dwarf made contact with the metal surface. That, more than Gromir's pleadings, held her back.
Stepping away, she eyed what Gromir claimed to be her mother's remains.
"Altar?" She thrust a shaking finger at the bones."Why
do you say that's my mother?"
Gromir straightened his robes and then spread his arms to indicate the whole of the ruins."During your absence from Taggoret, while I worked under Jannasten, it remained my hope you'd return one day and that we'd pick up where we left off. To that end, I wanted to offer you a gift on your homecoming, something grand." He paced before the altar."During my studies of arcane lore, I also dabbled in various historical archives and genealogies. In these, I found references to the Fairingots and traced them back as far as I could, cross-referencing them with other accounts of our people's earliest days. I compared these records to as many maps as I could access, double-checking depths, tunnel markings, and ancient settlement references. It took several years, but I at last believed I'd pinpointed one of the first, if not the very first, Fairingot settlement. I'd hoped to make the journey down here with you, but... well..."
He sighed."When another year passed, I instead showed my research to Jannasten." A smile flicked across his face."She was overjoyed, to say the least. A possible direct connection to her ancestors? Evidence that she descended from nobility? It was a more marvelous discovery than she'd ever dreamed. She wanted to see this place as soon as possible. At the same time, she wanted it kept secret until we confirmed its existence. I left the city on a supposed errand to visit clients in Highhelm, while she set up rumors about another of her lone surveying trips and followed a little later. We met at the gates beyond Davarn and came below together. The journey wasn't without peril, but suffice it to say we reached this place and found far more than we'd conceived waiting for us. I'd thought perhaps a few crumbling buildings or monuments might be left. To find an entire city relatively intact, and with the Fairingot sigil emblazoned about for anyone to see..."