Secrets of the Sword 2 (Death Before Dragons Book 8)

by Lindsay Buroker

  Zav didn’t typically turn his neck and head back to look at me while he was flying, but his head tilted enough that I could see one violet eye looking at me out of his peripheral vision. What do you mean?

  If I invited Xilneth and his clan—

  You wish to invite the whole clan? They are apolitical hippies. They cannot be tolerated.

  That’s exactly why I want to invite them. You will then complain to your kin that they’re coming and will embarrass you or act inappropriately at the wedding. Never mind that I had no idea what inappropriate dragon behavior would be—I was already concerned about the appropriate dragon activities Zav was planning. Then your mother, who I am certain does not want her clan or her son to be embarrassed, will insist on coming with the rest of your family to keep an eye on the Starsinger Clan.

  You wish me to enact a ruse on my mother?

  It’s either that or tell her you’re disappointed and hurt that she doesn’t care enough to come. You seemed reluctant to do so.

  I will enact the ruse.

  I smirked. Do you think it will work?

  Perhaps… I may need to modify what you suggest, but it is true that the Stormforge Clan never wishes to see its kin embarrassed. It is only because of your actions at the Crying Caverns that the queen no longer finds our relationship an embarrassment. She has told many of how you fought with me and risked yourself to free our kin.

  She talks about me? I didn’t know whether to feel mortified or pleased.

  Yes. I do not believe she is truly enamored with you, but she wishes others to believe you are a worthy mate for her son.

  I guess that’ll do. I wasn’t enamored with her either. In-laws don’t have to love each other, just refrain from throwing drumsticks at each other during Thanksgiving dinner.

  Drumsticks?

  Yes. If we survive this—I paused to correct myself with some of the positive thinking that Mary recommended—after we deal with the lich and return home victorious, I’ll pick up a turkey. Thanksgiving is coming up. Make that ten turkeys. You’ll need a few of your own, I trust.

  I am certain. Birds on your world are small.

  Zav flew faster than I would have preferred, and the ominous black Mount Crenel soon grew visible on the horizon. I hoped he knew how to get in. The lich had appeared near the top, so maybe that meant an entrance was up there. I hadn’t sensed her until she’d been outside, so she’d either activated some camouflage until she chose to reveal herself or the mountain had some inherent magic that hid its contents. That could make sense if the dwarves didn’t want strangers finding their ancient tomb and repository.

  Instead of flying straight to the top, Zav started his search over the foothills, sailing over the area where Li had been captured. I peered over his side, hoping vainly to spot Chopper lying down there, but the rocky slopes were empty of anything except a few sturdy tufts of vegetation growing up from cracks.

  The road I’d been following the day before led to a vertical cliff on the side of the mountain, but if a doorway was there, it had been collapsed. Stone columns lay tumbled to the ground and broken, reminding me of Roman ruin sites in Italy.

  Several dead animals lay among the ruins, not only the deer-like creatures I’d seen before but large birds and something that looked like a scaly bear. This place didn’t seem to be good for one’s health.

  It might be possible to clear that entrance and go in there, Zav told me as he circled the area, not commenting on the animal carcasses, but I sense collapsed tunnels on the other side. They go back at least a quarter of a mile. That is as far as I can sense. The interior of the mountain is protected by obscuring magic.

  The creatures and the lich had to come out from somewhere that’s open, right?

  Yes. We will seek another entrance. Zav flew around the mountain and toward the peak. I sense a hint of magic.

  A minion? I rested my hand on Fezzik.

  An artifact. Perhaps a weapon.

  I sat up straight. Chopper?

  I do not believe so, but we will investigate.

  With his powerful wings, it didn’t take him long to fly up thousands of feet toward the peak. He didn’t go all the way to the top but shifted his path to fly horizontally along the crown. I also sensed something magical and squinted toward the ground.

  It could be a trap, he pointed out. Something left outside to lure us down.

  Is it something that would entice a dragon?

  No, but it might entice a human or dwarf.

  Do you think the lich is worried about humans or dwarves?

  Did she not capture the half-dwarf thief?

  Yes, but we don’t know why. It might have been a vendetta rather than worry.

  After the talk of traps, I thought he might ignore the item, but he sailed closer to the ground.

  This may be something useful, he said.

  It did feel to my senses like a weapon. But why would a magical weapon be lying among the rocks? Unless it was being used as bait in a trap….

  There was no road up this high on the craggy, uneven side of the mountain, nor even a path, but something glinted in the weak morning sun. Zav flew lower, gliding over what turned out to be a body, its armor reflecting the sunlight. There were several bodies, all armored, many with shields and great hammers or swords.

  “Dwarves?” I wondered.

  Zav surprised me by ignoring the potential danger and landing nearby.

  One of the dwarves carried a magical sword. Zav’s head turned on his long neck to look at me. Perhaps you should borrow it in case you need it for a battle inside. It will be more effective against magic than your firearm. We can return the weapon to the dwarves when we are done.

  You don’t sense any traps? I eyed the ground as if molten lava flowed over it, not wanting to be the one to trip an alarm and let the lich know we were here. Something killed those dwarves.

  Admittedly, it had happened some time ago. Vermin had already chewed away their flesh and were working on the rest of the bodies. A grisly way to go.

  I do not, but you are right that traps could exist. One moment. Rock and dust stirred as Zav trickled magic toward the bodies—there were six visible now, one decapitated and others appearing to have been crushed by boulders. I grimaced as his magic tugged a sword out of one of the dwarf’s hands. The poor guy had died fighting. They all had.

  The sword floated over to me, no dried blood on its blade. But why would there be? The lich's minions were undead and didn’t bleed.

  The hilt was cold in my hand, the weapon heavy compared to Chopper, but I would carry it and use it if need be.

  A rock clattered farther up the mountain, and Zav’s head jerked around. A stout skeletal humanoid creature between four and five feet tall stood up there, gripping a double-headed axe, his hollow eyes turned toward the bodies. I couldn’t sense him, and Zav must not have either, but there he was. And even if he couldn’t detect us through our camouflaging magic, he must have seen the sword float over to us.

  Instead of coming down to investigate, the minion turned and stepped back between two boulders. An alcove he’d been assigned to stand guard from?

  Zav sprang into the air and flapped up to it. But it wasn’t an alcove. It was a hidden entrance, the tunnel opening not visible unless one stood—or flew—directly in front of it. It was only a few feet wide and seven or eight feet high. It was hard to imagine the lich being able to come out through the gap. Did that mean this wasn’t the real entrance?

  The skeleton went inside, Zav said, landing again on the rocks. Likely to warn the lich that someone is out here.

  Are we going in?

  Zav magically lifted me to the ground, then shifted into his human form. He continued to speak telepathically. We must. I must gather as much intelligence as possible before my people arrive. If the lich has concocted some way to deal with numerous dragons coming for her… they must be warned. He lifted his chin. There is danger of traps. I will go first.

  Since he was far mo
re powerful than I, I couldn’t object. Since we would need all the help we could get, I rubbed Sindari’s charm to summon him.

  As Zav strode toward the tunnel, I noticed he wore the yellow Crocs. I would have thought elven slippers would be more appropriate for a quest, but maybe he thought he would need luck inside.

  I had a feeling we both would.

  26

  Yis Tarathka, a female voice rasped in my mind before we’d gone more than ten feet into the tunnel.

  The lich? Not sure I wanted to know what she was saying, I tapped my translation charm.

  Visitors? she continued. A puny mongrel and one of the righteous Stormforge dragons.

  Zav continued on. If he answered, he didn’t include me in the telepathic communication.

  Thinking of his warning not to vex the lich, I also didn’t answer. Sindari padded silently at my side, not commenting on the telepathic announcement.

  I expected far more dragons than one, the lich continued. And I am prepared. You will not survive if you continue farther into my abode. I have claimed this world for mine, and as soon as I have gathered the necessary forces, I will claim all of the Cosmic Realms. After a pause, she purred an addition that seemed to be for me. Including the wild worlds.

  I swallowed. That was Earth.

  “There’s no way she can do that, right?” I whispered.

  Zav looked at me over his shoulder. She will not defeat all the dragons and claim anything.

  I defeated one dragon already, she continued. Once I made the change, the Stormforge dragon who ruled this world was no match for me. I slew him easily and allowed my minions to feast upon his bones.

  Sacrilege! Zav replied.

  Some of my minions still retain enough mortal flesh that they grow hungry.

  A dead dragon must be interred, not fed to scavengers. Zav’s back was as stiff as a board as he picked up his pace, striding through the tunnel, no sign yet of the skeletal minion that had spotted us.

  All Stormforge dragons will be treated thus. You have slain many Silverclaws, so I have been tasked to deal with your clan, to remove them from the Cosmic Realms. Permanently.

  She had been tasked? Had the bitter Silverclaw dragons gotten together and drawn straws? Let’s see who gets to turn themselves into an undead lich today…

  It is the Silverclaws who will be dealt with permanently. Zav, maybe forgetting he wasn’t in dragon form, growled.

  “Don’t let her vex you,” I whispered, patting him on the shoulder. “Women like to play mind games with men. Don’t give in.”

  I am regretting that I forbade you from vexing her, he replied.

  You didn’t forbid it. You only suggested I not vex her. Actually, you asked it as a favor. I can ignore your favor and vex her vociferously if I feel it’s appropriate.

  Do not.

  Our tunnel slanted downward, growing darker as we traveled farther from the opening, and I activated my night-vision charm. The world turned a pale green, details more difficult to pick out and depth perception iffy. I almost missed a step when the flat ground turned into a staircase descending into the mountain.

  So far, the walls, floor, and ceiling had been smooth, carved with magic or some stone-shaving tool. I ran my fingers along one wall as we descended. The stone felt more crystalline than porous, and the tunnel smelled clean and fresh instead of dank and musty, like most caves I’d been in, or acrid and sulfuric like the air outside. My sensitive lungs were grateful for this small boon, but it was confusing.

  I brought a finger to my nose and sniffed.

  It’s salt, Sindari said.

  Salt? Black salt? I’d seen black “lava” salt in the fancy grocery stores back home, but it was regular sea salt mixed with charcoal.

  Black salt. The dwarven world is known for it. Some say it is as valuable a trade item as their enchanted weapons.

  I’ll gladly chip away a few barrels full to trade for my sword.

  Does your new blade not satisfy you?

  It’s heavy, and it doesn’t glow.

  Perhaps it does, and you don’t know how to activate its magic.

  “Story of my life,” I muttered, and Zav glanced back. “Sindari and I are discussing the dwarven salt trade,” I explained, seeing little point in keeping my mouth shut since the lich knew we were here.

  Zav didn’t seem surprised. They are known for it.

  After descending the equivalent of a couple of European cathedrals, we reached a wide tunnel at the bottom that stretched in two directions. A faint creaking came from the right, silence from the left. After coming upon the dead dwarves outside, my imagination had no problem conjuring bodies hanging from nooses, the creaking a result of them swaying on ropes buffeted by underground drafts.

  Zav gazed in both directions but must not have had any better luck than I did sensing what was out there.

  I am accustomed to striding straight into danger and trusting my prowess and power to be enough to win the day, but that is likely to be insufficient here. Zav faced me. We must have a crafty plan and must not allow ourselves to walk into her trap.

  Is it my job to come up with that? I looked at Sindari, who ruffled his fur and shook his head. The tiger equivalent of a shrug.

  As a less powerful being, you’ve had to be crafty before, Zav pointed out.

  Yeah, but I’m not great at it. Can you sense anything down here?

  Yes. I sense many, many undead minions in that direction. He nodded to the right, toward the distant creaking. Anyone wishing to avoid a battle would choose the other direction. He looked to the left. This makes me believe that the trap is that way, perhaps some magical explosion that will bring down the mountain on us or kill us outright.

  I’d never seen Zav hesitate to face an opponent, and it scared me. How was I supposed to come up with something clever enough to best someone even he was worried about battling?

  Can you read any of their minds and get the lay of the land? I asked. If we had a map, that would be helpful. It would make it a lot easier to avoid her traps and sneak up on her.

  Or avoid her altogether until the others arrive. I seek only intelligence. A map would be excellent, but I also must know if she has found something that can defeat my people. She must know they are on the way, but she sounded confident. He arched his eyebrows toward me. Cocky.

  Don’t all dragons always sound confident and cocky?

  Superior predators have that tendency, yes. As to the mind-reading, it cannot be done with undead minions. Their brains are gone, their skulls empty. That is why they are so easily led by their masters and so difficult to subvert by their masters’ enemies.

  A distant scream echoed up from the depths of the mountain, and I flinched. “That didn’t sound undead.”

  Sindari cocked his head, listening. It sounded like a human female. The thief?

  “Is Li still alive?” I’d been certain the creatures or the lich would have torn her apart, and my gut twisted at the idea of her being tortured. “Why would the lich keep her alive? To question her? What could she possibly know?”

  Where you are? Sindari suggested.

  “Why would the lich care about me? Besides, aren’t we assuming she already knows where we are? She’s been chatting with Zav and me.”

  A broad telepathic transmission. Zav held a finger to his lips. I am certain she knows that we are inside the mountain, thanks to the error with the sword, but she shouldn’t know our precise location if our cloaking magic is working sufficiently.

  Li wouldn’t know our location either.

  Zav frowned. The lich may be torturing her for enjoyment. I can tell already from our brief conversation that she has been twisted by this deal she’s made with the underworld. Peynar’dokla Silverclaw was never appealing, but now…

  She’s evil.

  Zav continued to frown, as if he objected to the idea of any dragon receiving such a descriptor.

  Can you sense Li? I couldn’t, but maybe with his range, he could. Maybe you could
read her mind and pluck a map out of it. Or at least her memories of the inside of this mountain.

  Mind reading is typically done at close range, but let me see if I can reach her without the lich sensing me.

  I almost said that I didn’t care if the lich sensed him, but that wasn’t true. If she did, she might kill Li so she couldn’t be a source of intel for us. Even if Li had only caused problems for me, I couldn’t wish her dead. Not someone who was, whether I wanted it to be true or not, similar to me in a lot of ways.

  You can do it. I swatted him on the butt.

  Zav’s eyebrows rose again. Was that meant as encouragement?

  Yeah. It’s a human thing. Like high fives. I smirked at him. It’s a low five.

  Sindari sighed, his tail swishing. You are not engaging in foreplay here, are you?

  No. That was for encouragement. I swatted him on the rump. Like that.

  I am not encouraged.

  That’s because you’re a little stuffy and uptight.

  I should gnaw off your foot for that comment.

  I’m going to need it against the lich.

  Perhaps a toe, then.

  I bet people don’t encourage you twice.

  Zav, who might have been able to overhear our telepathic conversation, held up a hand. I am able to sense her. She is gravely injured and not very coherent. Also, Peynar’dokla is near her, so I have to be careful, but I will attempt to extract useful information.

  Clacking sounds came from the tunnel, from what had been the direction of silence. I pulled Zav against the wall with me, wondering if there was any chance our camouflage magic would keep whoever—or whatever—was coming from noticing us. The tunnels weren’t very wide.

  Sindari also joined us, pressing one side to the wall but facing the tunnel, poised to strike.

  Two dwarf skeletons marched into view, flaps of tendon and gristle still attached to their bones. They carried huge axes and shields as they strode toward us, walking side by side and taking up most of the width of the tunnel.

  There was no way they would fail to see us. Unless we could scoot back and they turned to head up the steps.

  Careful not to make a noise, I eased backward several steps, pulling Zav along with me. His eyes were closed. He had to be aware of the skeletons, but maybe he thought it was more important to try to get information from Li as quickly as he could. If she was dying—or in danger of being killed with a thought—he was probably right.