by C. E. Swain
The name Darious was not chiseled into the stone, like all the ones in the dungeon, but the stone was chiseled away, leaving his name and the runes that were under it, behind. One of the runes below his name was crooked, and Chanry reached out to straighten it without thinking. To his surprise, it turned easily when he tried it, and he turned the rune to its proper position. When it was once again straight, there was a click from inside the statue, and the chiseled out area opened and slid forward. Inside was a small box with golden runes inlayed in the top, with gold hinges, and a gold clasp holding it closed. A golden dragon was in the center of the lid, and it looked almost alive.
Chanry grabbed the box and ran to the stairs that led down into the dungeon. His master needed it, and they had only been gone a short time, so he decided to follow them. When he reached the bottom of the stairs, and was in the room it ended in, he stopped and looked around. The light from the stairs enabled him to see, but the hallways leading away were very dark, and he had forgotten to bring a torch. Thinking he saw a flicker of light down the left hallway, he turned and ran after it. He came to the intersection where he thought the light had vanished, and looked down it. Thinking he could still see the light, he ran to another intersection and turned to follow his master.
He did not know how many times he turned while following the light in the hallways, but he had come to another intersection deep in the dungeon, and he could no longer see the light in any direction. He did not know what to do, and it was very dark in the dungeon, but he did not panic. He stood in the middle of the intersection, and looked down each hall as best he could. He was lost and he knew it, but he was not afraid. He stood looking down the halls, as he held the box in both hands, and wondered when his master would find him.
The faint pale light caught his attention, as it came from the hall he happened to be looking down at the time. Chanry ran to where the light emanated, and called to his master as he did. The light came from a slight crack in the wall, in the center of the hallway, and Chanry put his fingers into the crack and pulled. The door opened easily, and Chanry bolted into the room, expecting to find his master, and the men that were with him.
The light grew when he entered the room, and a faint humming sound began. A smooth round transparent stone, sat on a table in front of him, and a light began to pulse from within it. A book sat on one side of the pulsing stone, and a Sword lay on the other. A hazy cloud formed inside the stone, and then cleared, Chanry saw a young dragon rolling in the grass by a lake, and the dragon stopped rolling and looked straight at him. The cloud vanished in a bright flash, and Chanry fell to the ground, and knew no more.
Menimeth and his companions reached the end of the hall that afternoon, and found a large underground pool at the bottom of some stairs that were discovered behind the last door, which was at the end of the hall. The mouth of a tunnel loomed in the back of the cave that held the large pool, and a boat was tied to a small wooden dock in front of them. They were about to get into the boat when the flash of light came from behind them, and filled the entire dungeon as it did.
The searchers raced back to the stairs that led up to the chapel, and looked for the source of the light, but did not find it along the way. Menimeth went up into the chapel, and he ran out the doors and into the courtyard. The men in the camp leaped up when he burst from the doors and looked around, and then they looked at Menimeth. He stood there and studied the camp, but everything seemed normal.
"Chanry!" He thought, and ran back into the chapel.
They looked around the room for him, and searched everywhere they could think to look, but could not find him. That was when Kyler found the open door in the base of the statue, and called to his companions.
"Look at this." He said to them.
"The boy must have found the box in here." Kyler said, as he pointed to the empty chamber.
"But what has happened to him?" Litlorn asked.
"He went looking for me." Menimeth said, as he turned to the stairs and went back down into the dungeon.
The men followed Menimeth with their torches in hand, and found Chanry's footprints in the dust, leading off down the hallway to their left.
"He went this way." Menimeth said, and followed the footprints as they led away down the hall.
The four men followed the tracks as they turned one-way, and then another, leading them deeper into the dungeon. When they found him, Chanry was laying on the floor in a deep sleep, in the room where he had found the artifacts. The men rushed into the room, and Menimeth picked the boy up and held him in his arms, before noticing the objects lying on the table. Litlorn examined them closely without touching them, and then he put them in a bag. Chanry still held the box in his hands, and Menimeth left it there, as he carried the boy back to the chapel.
Chanry was pale and cold, so Menimeth wrapped him in his blankets, and though it warmed him, he did not wake. Menimeth watched over him while he slept, and worried that he would not wake. When Danorathin returned that night and landed in the courtyard, he settled down beside the doors to the chapel, and went to sleep.
When Menimeth woke the next morning, he looked at Chanry's bed, and the boy who lay there sleeping. He was very worried about him, and often paced the floor beside his bed, and then he would stop and watch the boy, as he lay asleep, before pacing again. Four days had passed since the incident, and still the boy slept.
Litlorn inspected the artifacts they had discovered in the room where Chanry was found, and was excited about them. These were Darious's personal possessions, and were highly sought after by mages, as well as people of position. Their magic was very powerful, and was rumored to be the reason Darious became the High Priest of Glansford.
The book was written in a language even Litlorn did not know, and was very old, and bound in a skin of unknown origin. The words were in a flowing script, which seemed to come off the page as you tried to read it. There were strange symbols on many of the pages, but no one knew what they were, or the drawings that appeared throughout the book.
The sword was in its scabbard, and had the name Da'Thintahar written on the side in gold inlay. Runes were all over the scabbard as well as jewels and gold designs. Litlorn tried to remove the sword from the scabbard, but it would not come out. Kyler tried next but could not get it to budge, and Feran had even less luck. Menimeth tried several times, but was unable to free the blade from its scabbard, and in the end, he gave up. Litlorn thought it was a magic spell, and tried many different counter spells, but still the blade could not be removed.
The Stone of Knowledge was the smooth round stone found by Chanry when he entered the secret room. It was beautiful to look at, and was older than all other things in the land of magic, except for the great mother dragon. Only those few, who had the magic in them strong enough to light the stone, could use it. Less than a handful of people were still alive that knew its origin, or how it was used, but only the great mother dragon knew when, and why, it was made.
Danorathin would fly away in the mornings to catch a deer, but returned to the same spot after he had eaten, and did not move again until the next morning. His master worried about the boy, and Litlorn tried to use magic to wake him several times, but it had no affect. Man and dragon both feared for him, and his life.
After several days, the solders that had stayed behind became used to the dragon laying so close to them. At first they would always avoid him when he was there, but slowly they calmed down, and went on about the daily routine of a solder.
When Chanry finely awoke, seven days had passed. It was early in the morning and everyone still slept, so he walked out of the chapel, and into the courtyard. Danorathin was lying by the doors like he had for many days, and Chanry walked up to him and rubbed his head. The great dragon opened one eye, and looked at him as he stood there. The boy was not afraid of the dragon that towered over him even lying down, and looked back at the giant eye.
Danorathin raised his massive head and looked at the boy who stood s
o boldly at his feet. He liked Chanry, and the way he treated his master, and his master was very fond of the boy as well. Menimeth came from the chapel quickly, and stopped when he saw Chanry standing in front of Danorathin. It was obvious that he was relieved by the look on his face, and the dragon shook his head and laid it back on the ground at Chanry's feet.
"We have been worried about you." Menimeth said at last. "How do you feel?"
Chanry turned to his master, and with bright eyes and a huge smile, said.
"I found it Meni, I found it. It was in the chapel all along."
"Yes, we know. It is still on your bed where you have been for a very long time." Menimeth said, and smiled at the boy's excitement.
"Bed? How long was I in bed? I feel fine." Chanry asked, with confusion in his voice.
"You have been asleep for a week, and we feared you would not wake at all." Menimeth replied.
"A week! I was asleep for a week?"
"Yes you were, but you are awake now."
"I am, very hungry, is there anything to eat, Meni?" Chanry asked, as he walked to his master, and stood looking up at him.
"I am sure we can fix you something to end your hunger." Menimeth said, as he guided Chanry back into the chapel.
Kyler was up and cooking when the two walked into the small room where they slept, which was to the side of the main room. A stove and oven were built into the wall at the back, and Kyler stood there, busy with their breakfast. Feran sat at the small table and smiled at the boy when they entered. They were all relieved to see the boy awake, and he ate enough for three grown men that morning.
The next day, Captain Brannor returned with his men and the ten prisoners just before midday. Commander Rayden and his battle group were with them, and they observed all of the military protocols expected in this situation when they arrived. He placed his troops outside of the monastery, and entered with only his officers, and Dorben.
Danorathin was lying on the ground only feet behind his master, and Chanry stood in front of him. Javen walked to his friends who stood beside Menimeth, and greeted them with smiles and laughter as they were reunited.
Commander Rayden, Dorben, and the two officers that accompanied them, froze in their tracks when they saw the dragon. They looked around at the men who camped inside the monastery, and were surprised that they seemed not to notice it. Men went about their duties as if it were normal to have a dragon in their camp, and walked around the beast to get from one place to another.
After several seconds, the four men advanced to where Menimeth stood smiling at them, and bowed to him in the formal greeting of a solder to royalty. Captain Brannor introduced them one at a time, and in the military fashion, then stepped to the side, and waited to give his report. Menimeth acknowledged each one as they were introduced, and offered them something to eat when the introductions were finished. As they walked into the chapel, the four men from the Lost Cavalry eyed the dragon suspiciously as they passed him.
The men told their stories while they ate, and soon were at ease with one another. Several barrels of ale were found when the brigands were run out of the monastery, and the men drank while they talked.
Litlorn joined Menimeth and Commander Rayden after they had finished eating, as they walked around the monastery and talked. Menimeth listened to Commander Rayden's plea and thought about his plight, and after a long pause, he told Commander Rayden what he believed was happening, and what must be done to stop it. The men listened to Litlorn as he told the story of the first war, and about what was happening now that Arnoran had awakened. They had never seen an elf before, and listened intently to what he had to say. Menimeth told them both about Chidren, and what his part in all this was, as far as he could tell. Not enough information was available to them, but he was involved in the brigand influx somehow, and Menimeth hoped these new prisoners would shed some light on what was happening. The outlaws were questioned, but in reality they were trained solders, and talked very little.
Menimeth, with Danorathin's help, persuaded one outlaw to talk. He learned about the plan to demoralize the people of the empire, and kill as many of the young men as they could, without getting caught. The brigands were about to start setting traps for the guards all across the west as well. They believed that the west would crumble quickly when the forces attacked from out of the Wilderlands, and the rest of the empire would not last long when it did.
Chidren was sending troops into the Wilderlands, but he had only just begun to do so within the last week. The solders that were sent to impersonate outlaws had been the first ones to arrive in the western realm, and start their reign of terror. Arnoran wanted the White Kingdoms for their riches, and to acquire two fronts with which to crush the Great Empire. Nothing stood in his way once the men had made it through the realms, so Chidren was to overrun the White kingdoms first. The people that he enslaved from the five kingdoms would help him conquer all of the lands of men.
Commander Rayden agreed to help Menimeth, and believed he could be trusted, but when he told him how many men he really commanded, Menimeth was speechless. The White Kingdoms had only six thousand solders in all of the five kingdoms, and none had a cavalry of even close to that size.
Menimeth told Commander Rayden he should move his main camp to the southwest, where the game was more plentiful, and there was plenty of grass for his horses, without having to move them every few days. The supplies they needed for the solders in the main camp could be purchased in Argnon, and they could find other goods that the solders often coveted as well. It would help his cavalry stay out of sight, and the men could visit the towns in small groups.
Commander Rayden agreed, and sent ten men back to the town of Frothing, to relay the information to the men south of the town, and then on to the main camp with their orders. Twenty men he kept with him along with Dorben, and the rest were sent to look for a good place to set up a main camp.
The next morning, Captain Brannor set about packing up the camp while Menimeth and Danorathin went hunting. Litlorn and the other companions packed their supplies and the artifacts in bags, and loaded them on the packhorses. All of the weapons and armor that the outlaws had worn, as well as the horses found in the monastery, were confiscated, and Captain Brannor's solders traded their inferior equipment, for the better ones of the outlaws. Captain Brannor's men were riding horses that belonged to the regent, so Menimeth gave each one a horse of their own. When they left the monastery behind, and headed north again, all of Captain Brannor's men were better armed, and better protected.
Menimeth met the long line of solders at the bridge, and dropped from Danorathin onto the ground. His friends rode at the front with Captain Brannor and Commander Rayden, and led the party back to Argnon, and Chanry held the rains to Menimeth's horse, as he mounted Donner for the return trip.
On the morning of the third day after leaving the monastery behind, the group rode into Argnon to the shouts of the people of the town.
Chapter Eleven
Darik, Finor, and the fighters that were chosen to go with them, rode east across the wild and overgrown countryside. It would take several weeks to get to the great road, and more to reach their destination, by the route they had chosen. It was not the straightest route, but it was the fastest way to get there unseen. Anyone who did happen to see them would think they were ordinary travelers, on their way to the Great North Road.
Darik was not liked by the men of the party he rode with, or any of the solders in the main camp for that matter. A mage of his level was looked at with suspicion and jealousy because of his abilities, and was avoided by the others in the camp. Even though midlevel mages were used for mundane purposes when not in battle, and were considered disposable by the commanders, ahead of seasoned solders.
Riding at the back of the group, offered him the opportunity to keep an eye on the solders as they traveled. Knowing he would not be making the return trip to the camp in the north, he had packed all of his belongings before they departed.
Freedom from the service of Arnoran was waiting for him at the journeys end, and he was looking forward to it. None of these fools would be returning to the camp as well, he would have to see to that, because Avren would believe he had died along with the solders in the ambush, and would forget about him all together, or at least that was the plan.
As they camped at night along the way, Darik slept apart from the solders. He built his own fire, and cooked his own food, and did not speak to any of them except Finor, unless he was forced to. His only real concern, it seemed, was where to go once he had regained his freedom. His home was gone, and he knew no one in this far away land that he could turn to, but he knew things even Avren did not about the campaign. He would wait and see what happened at their destination, and go from there. His life was about to change, but he had no idea how much.