An Alliance of Mortals, page 35
part #6 of The New Earth Chronicles Series
“Handy,” Magnus told him.
“Thanks. Now, as for our mysterious visitor, I may have located her.”
“May have?”
“Yes. An entire section of this floor is blocked off by a heavy gate.”
“Heavier than this?” Malcolm asked, gesturing at the iron door that led to the ramp.
“Much heavier,” Hallic replied. “And it is obviously quite old. Its surface is covered with streaks of rust and there are no indications that it has been opened in years.”
“Then how would the emissary even get into that section?” Magnus asked in confusion.
“Magic?” Hallic said with a shrug. “I have no idea. But I believe that if she is on this level, that is where she is.”
“Magnus, can you locate her?” Sarah asked the shaman.
“Give me a minute,” he replied as he closed his eyes.
Crow, are you there?
I am always here, child, the harsh croaking voice replied.
Can your fellow spirits locate the dark gods' agent for me?
Yes. Spider knows where she is. I will speak with her.
“The spirits are checking,” Magnus said as he opened his eyes and looked at the others.
Hallic nodded and walked off to check each of the entrances into the room.
Antoine was looking around alertly, obviously using his preternatural senses to listen for any threats.
Malcolm and Sarah both waited and watched the shaman as he closed his eyes again.
Spider has told me that the evil one is on the same level as you are, Crow said a moment later. She is approximately fifty yards to the northeast of your current location. She is in a place with only one entrance. Spider does not know why.
After another brief pause, Crow spoke again.
She is not alone, he added.
Who is with her? Magnus asked him.
Spider doesn't know. But whoever they are, they radiate dark power. Be careful, child. They are waiting for you.
Thank you, Crow.
Magnus opened his eyes again and looked at the group.
“She is here,” he told them. “Northeast of this room, about fifty yards away. And Crow says that she is not alone.”
“Naturally,” Malcolm growled. “Who's with her?”
“Magic-users, apparently. Whether they are mages or wizards, the spirits can't tell.”
“The goblin leadership,” Hallic said from across the room. “The emissary is probably meeting with them, planning another attack against the anchors.”
“Possibly. But Crow says that she knows we are here and that she is waiting for us,” Magnus told him.
Hallic sighed dramatically.
“Why isn't anything ever easy?” he complained. “I hate magic-users. No offense, Sarah.”
She laughed at him.
“None taken. I'm not one of them, Hallic. I am something else entirely.”
“Which means that they won't know how to deal with you,” Malcolm told her with a wink. “Use that if you can. Hallic, which way is northeast?”
The rogue pointed at one of the openings.
“That way. The same direction that leads to the gate I mentioned. I'll go ahead and see if there are any surprises waiting for us. Follow me, but take it slow.”
He slipped out of the room and the others walked over to stand by the exit.
“This is it,” Malcolm told them. “One way or the other, this should be our last battle.”
He looked at each of them in turn.
“Do me a favor, all of you,” he said sincerely. “Don't die, okay? I'm becoming rather fond of you.”
“Even me?” Antoine asked him curiously.
“Yes, my friend. Even you. Let's go.”
He walked out of the room and Antoine followed him, looking thoughtful.
Sarah and Magnus exchanged glances.
“Are you ready?” the shaman asked her.
She took a deep breath and nodded.
“As ready as I will ever be, I guess. You?”
“Yes, although I'm not sure that I will be of much use. The spirits have done all that they can to help me. I doubt that they will offer any more assistance. I am just an ordinary man now.”
Sarah gave him a quick hug and grinned up at him.
“Whatever you are now, Magnus,” she told him. “You are anything but ordinary. Now let's get moving. We have a blind date and we don't want to keep the lady waiting.”
Chapter 26
The level was eerily silent, a brooding stillness that felt like some evil thing was simply waiting to spring on its prey. The group was on high alert as they followed a long, winding hallway unbroken by doorways all the way to a flat black iron gate where they met Hallic again.
He looked at them irritably and then gestured at the barrier.
“This thing has no hinges or locks on this side,” he told them in disgust. “If it's a door, then I can't find a way to open it. And it is thick, several inches of heavy iron at least. Does anyone have any ideas?”
Malcolm stepped up to the metal barrier and tapped on it. His knuckles made a flat thudding sound as he struck the surface.
“Yes, it is very thick,” he said with a frown. “How the hell did the goblins install this damned thing in the first place? And how did they get through it?”
Hallic shrugged as he ran his fingertips over the metal.
“No idea. Dark magic, possibly.”
“Maybe there's another way in?” Sarah wondered. “Another door in one of the other hallways?”
“No, the other pathways don't lead in this direction,” Magnus told her. “Crow said that the emissary is in a place with just one entrance. So this doorway is the only way in and out.”
“Well, that sucks,” she replied angrily. “Do you mean to tell me that we've fought all this way just to be blocked by an oversized door?”
“I'm not sure,” the shaman told her. “But I can say for certain that I cannot get through it.”
Malcolm and Hallic looked stymied, but Antoine stared at the iron barrier and stroked his chin.
“Do you think that there is a way to open this thing from the other side?” he asked Hallic.
The rogue raised an eyebrow.
“I would assume so. Why?”
“Because I might be able to reach the room beyond this gate,” the vampire explained. “But if I can and there is no way to open it, then I will probably be slaughtered by that emissary and whatever spellcasters are with her. It would be a waste to die for nothing, don't you think?”
“You can get through that?” Hallic asked in surprise. “My friend, you are even more talented than I suspected.”
“But we can't allow Antoine to die for nothing!” Sarah exclaimed with a scowl. “I won't allow it and that's that.”
“I agree,” Malcolm said. “Magnus, can your spirit friends find out if this thing can be opened from the inside?”
The shaman sighed and closed his eyes.
“I'll ask,” he replied. “Hang on for a moment.”
Crow?
Again you call on me. What is it now, child?
We are barred from entering the room where the dark agent is hiding. The portal into that room cannot be opened from this side. Is there a way to open it from inside?
Bide. I will speak with Spider again.
Magnus waited silently with his eyes closed. He heard Sarah whispering to Antoine, but he couldn't make out what they were saying. Obviously she was very fond of the vampire and did not want him to put himself in harm's way for no good reason. Neither did Magnus.
Spider does not understand mechanical things, Crow said suddenly. But she tells me that there are two large metal bars across the inside of that door. They appear to be very heavy. If someone wanted to move them, they would have to be very strong.
Thank you, Crow. I will inform my companions.
He opened his eyes and looked at the others.
“Crow tells me that there are a couple of large metal bars across the inside of that barrier,” he told them. “Apparently they are quite heavy. Which means that the door can be opened, if one is strong enough to slide those bars out of the way.”
“Ah, I see,” Antoine said thoughtfully. “Thank you. I will make the attempt, then.”
“Are you sure?” Sarah asked anxiously. “You don't have to, you know.”
“Do I not? Dear one, we have not come this far to turn back now. Not while there is a chance to stop that creature and save the mortal races. Where would the honor be in that?”
“Honor be damned!” Sarah exclaimed angrily as she took one of Antoine's hands in hers. “I don't want you to die.”
The vampire gently pulled his hand away and then stroked her hair delicately.
“It could be argued that I died years ago in the tunnels beneath Paris,” he replied. “But whatever happens, I have to attempt this. Now please, step back and allow me to do what I must.”
Sarah moved to stand next to Magnus, her expression one of deep sadness.
The shaman smiled down at her.
“He's tough,” he whispered. “Don't assume the worst just yet. Antoine may be the one who surprises our enemies the most. You saw how horrified the goblin warriors were as they fought him. Have some faith in his strength and his wisdom.”
She nodded silently and watched as Antoine gestured for Malcolm and Hallic to give him some room.
Everyone moved back to stand about ten feet from the barrier. Antoine then bowed his head and put his hands together as if he was praying. His body rippled. It looked like waves of heat were rising from the ground beneath him and distorting his image.
Sarah gasped and stared in amazement as the vampire was enveloped in a thick mist. His body faded away and the mist slipped beneath the iron gate and disappeared.
“Good God,” Malcolm exclaimed. “He turned into smoke! How the hell did he do that?”
“You can ask him yourself if we all get out of this in one piece,” Hallic replied. “Now get ready. We'll have to go in fast as soon as Antoine opens that gate. Don't hesitate. There is no strategy now. We all know why we are here.”
Malcolm and Magnus both nodded and stared at the heavy door. Sarah raised her wand and spun the tip in a little circle. She muttered a few words under her breath and, when Magnus noticed, she smiled at him.
“Just a little insurance,” she said softly.
“Okay.”
The harsh grating sound of metal scraping on metal came from the other side of the door. Hallic crouched down and held his daggers out, ready to lunge into the next room.
The door quivered and then slowly opened inward, the bottom edge squealing against the rocky floor. A loud chanting could suddenly be heard from inside the room, a chilling medley of voices that were calling out in some unknown language.
Once the barrier was open just wide enough for a person to slip through, the rogue jumped into the gap and disappeared within.
Antoine peered out at the others.
“Come in,” he said quietly. “Our enemies are a little distracted at the moment. I do not believe that they know we are here.”
Malcolm squeezed through the opening and Sarah and Magnus followed him.
The room that they entered was immense, more of a cathedral than a mere hall. The ceiling stretched up at least twenty feet above them into a towering dome. On the far side of the room, several dozen yards away, a circle of black-robed figure were standing around a blazing fire. The flames were tinged with a sickening green hue, the color of rot and putrefaction. The stench in the room was intense and stomach turning and Sarah held her hand to her mouth, almost gagging.
Except for the robed magic-users, there were no guards or other goblins anywhere in the room and Sarah and Magnus exchanged puzzled glances.
“They have no warriors to defend them?” she wondered in confusion, still trying to breathe as little as possible.
“Perhaps they didn't feel the need, with so many goblins defending this level?” the shaman replied as he watched the chanters closely.
“Maybe. But I don't trust this situation,” Malcolm told them. “If the emissary is as powerful as everyone seems to think, why allow us in here in the first place?”
“We are being set up,” Antoine calmly said. “I do not think that those magic-users are unaware of our presence.”
“So what do we do?” Sarah asked him.
“We destroy them,” the vampire said simply. “That is why we came, after all, so let us go ahead and be done with it.”
He began to stalk toward the chanting casters, a menacing figure that radiated danger.
Malcolm moved forward to walk beside him and Sarah and Magnus followed the pair. Hallic was somewhere in the room, but he was keeping to the shadows and the group had no idea where he was.
The chanting grew in volume and intensity and the flames that the robed figures were staring into grew taller and began to roar with power.
“What the hell is happening?” Magnus wondered.
“They are casting a spell,” Sarah replied as she watched the enemies. “But what kind of spell it is, I have no idea. If it takes that many casters, it must be very powerful.”
“Then we'd better stop them before they finish it, don't you think?” the shaman replied.
He reached inside of his buckskin shirt and pulled out a weapon. Sarah stared at it in surprise.
“I didn't know that you were armed, Magnus,” she whispered. “Is that a tomahawk?”
“Yes, a gift from Crow.”
He held out the weapon and Sarah looked at it closely.
The tomahawk was made up of a short wooden handle, which was inscribed with ancient runes, and a stone head that had been chipped along its edge to razor sharpness. Several black feathers were tied to the handle where it met the head and Sarah nodded at them.
“Crow's?” she asked the shaman.
“Yes. They have imbued the weapon with his power. But this tomahawk is very precious and unique and not to be used against ordinary foes, which is why I haven't revealed it until now.”
Sarah nodded and looked down at her own weapon. The wand's gem had stopped glowing entirely as soon as they had entered the chamber and she frowned at it and gave the wand a little shake.
The gem flickered faintly and then faded again and Sarah hissed in annoyance.
“Stupid wand,” she muttered.
“Focus,” Magnus said sharply. “We're in great danger here.”
Sarah looked up and stopped in her tracks. Both Malcolm and Antoine were about to attack the wildly chanting magic-users and Magnus had stopped moving as well, as he waited to see what would happen.
One of the robed figures suddenly spun around and pointed at the two large men. A shrill cry came from within its hood and the green flames shot up a dozen feet and began to bend toward Malcolm and Antoine.
“Oh no!” Sarah gasped in fear. “They're going to try to burn them.”
The spellcaster who was pointing at the two men suddenly cried out and collapsed, a dagger appearing in its throat. The flames died down again and the other magic-users stopped their chanting and turned to look at their companion, apparently shocked by his sudden death.
Before they could collect themselves, Antoine moved with preternatural speed and began tearing into the casters.
Malcolm followed him and, as he leaped at their enemies, he transformed back into a ravening werewolf.
“Our friends seem to have things well in hand again,” the shaman told Sarah.
She frowned and shook her head, looking around at the edges of the chamber, which were cloaked in shadow.
“No they don't,” she disagreed. “All of those casters are goblins. You can tell by how short they are. The emissary is supposed to be as tall as a human. If that's true, then where is she?”
Magnus gasped as he realized that Sarah was right. The panicked casters, all of whom were now trying to run away from the vampire and the werewolf, were obviously goblins. Where was the emissary?
“Malcolm! Antoine!” he called out. “Watch yourselves! The dark agent is missing!”
The last robed goblin fell with a frightened wail and both attackers spun around, searching for the dark agent.
“There's a hidden door back here,” they heard Hallic call out from beyond the fire pit. “Come on. Our target may be trying to escape on foot.”
Everyone ran toward his voice and they found the rogue standing at the back wall. He tapped on a section of what looked like solid stone.
“Here,” he said as he looked at Malcolm and Antoine. “I can't find a way to open the damned thing. Can either of you break it down?”
With a low growl, the werewolf stepped up to the wall and ran his talons over its surface. He found a seam and dug his claws into the stone. With a sudden yank, he ripped the narrow stone door out of the wall and flung it away with a crash.
“Simple and direct,” Hallic said with a grin. “I like that. Let's go.”
He slipped into the path beyond the doorway and both Malcolm and Antoine hurried to follow him.
Magnus looked at Sarah, who seemed to be hesitating before she entered the dark opening.
“What's wrong?” he asked her. “Do you sense something?”
“No, not really,” she replied in a small voice. “I just hate closed-in spaces, that's all. After living for so long under buildings and in holes to avoid monsters, I'm a bit claustrophobic.”
She smiled weakly at him.
“But I'll be fine. Come on, we have to keep up with the others.”
She walked into the opening and Magnus followed her. The crooked path beyond seemed to be a natural crack in the earth. It zigged and zagged, moving in random directions in the darkness.
“Can you see in here?” Sarah asked over her shoulder.
“Well enough,” Magnus replied. “The spirits have granted me some powers. My senses are sharper and my vision enhanced. I'll be fine.”
“Oh, okay. Then can you hear anything ahead? All I hear is silence and it's making me nervous.”
The shaman strained his ears, but he only heard the sounds of Sarah's and his own footsteps. If Malcolm and the others had found the emissary, they were far enough away that the conflict couldn't be heard yet.
