Who are you?
“Wizard Andor Tarum Risto, and you are Kale, the last of the Allerions.”
For one second, Kale wanted to ask him about the Allerions. But she realized that evil had access to her mind, and Granny Noon had warned her about the dangers of communicating with the wicked in any form.
I stand under Wulder’s authority. As she repeated the words the old emerlindian had given her, she felt Risto receding from her thoughts. I stand under Wulder’s authority. She heard his sinister chortle before his presence completely left her mind.
“I stand under Wulder’s authority.” She looked quickly around the room, expecting the evil wizard to appear.
“We have to get out of here. Surely, he’s coming.”
She pulled away from the egg and fell over, sitting down hard on the stone floor when her hand was released. She tried to jump to her feet, ready to run from the large chamber, but her legs would not obey.
Gymn chirped at her.
“I can’t take the egg with me!” She turned on Gymn and blistered him with a frustrated glare. “Think of something useful.”
Kale clenched her fists and drew her arms inside the moonbeam cape, folding them over her chest.
I can’t carry it. What can I do?
“Nothing, o’rant girl.” Risto’s voice mocked her. The taunting words sounded as if they came from somewhere in the room. Kale whirled around but saw nothing in the shadows.
“I stand under Wulder’s authority,” she shouted. She clapped her hands over her ears and tried to block any word Risto might hurl at her. The cloth of the cape came up as well in her haste to cover her ears.
“The cape,” Kale whispered. “If I can get the egg onto the cape, I might be able to push it into a hollow. Then I could carry it!”
She whipped the cape off her shoulders and spread it on the floor, lining side up, in front of the cabinet. Gymn flew around her as if inspecting her actions from every angle.
“I don’t think I will hurt it if it drops,” she said. “But I’ll try to ease it down just in case.”
Kale put her arms around the egg and braced her legs, ready to lift with all her strength. She gave a mighty heave and discovered the egg weighed less than Leetu. She lost her balance and staggered backward. Gymn flipped several times in the air and landed on the floor just as she steadied herself. She carefully lowered the egg onto her cape, then stood shaking her head in amazement.
“Weight’s not a problem,” she said after a moment. “But the opening to the hollow is way too small for the meech egg.” With Gymn sitting close, intently watching her struggle, Kale tried to get the hollow opening to stretch.
It’s hopeless.
“Ah yes, o’rant girl. It is hopeless. But your task is unnecessary at any rate.”
Kale wrinkled her brow and tried to think. Her head hurt now as Risto mindspoke. She needed to concentrate on how to solve the problem of moving the egg. The talent that attracted her to dragon eggs would not let her leave without the meech egg.
“I would like to discuss my plans with you. Would a new race be such a bad thing? Did Wulder really say new races should not be created? I merely want to supply the world with a work force.”
Kale regretted not ever having read the great tomes which told the history of Wulder’s involvement with the world. She knew the general story from tavern songs and bedtime stories. Wulder molded the land and sea and air out of His thoughts. He’d taken a bit of land and sea and air and formed each of the seven high races. But there were many things she did not know. She didn’t know if Wulder had said not to make any more races.
The ache in her temples eased a bit. Now she remembered that in all the tavern songs the making of the seven low races resulted in tragedy. A sharp pain streaked behind her eyes. Kale bent over and held her head in her hands.
“Did you like cleaning chicken coops? Scrubbing floors? The race of beings I propose will actually get pleasure out of doing things the high races disdain. This is not a bad thing. You are not wise enough to make judgments against me, Kale Allerion.”
The way Risto said her last name made Kale shiver. He hated her. She knew it.
I stand under Wulder’s authority. I stand under Wulder’s authority.
The pain in her head subsided. She sank to the floor, feeling drained.
Mistress Meiger’s blue scarf! I can make a sling like the ones I used for carrying an infant while I worked.
Gymn dove into a pocket and returned in only a moment with the long strip of soft cloth. Kale tied the bottom two corners of the cape to one end of the scarf and the top two to the other. The large meech egg hung as if in a snug hammock. With the scarf over one shoulder and across her chest, the cape cradled the egg against Kale’s back. She felt no weight to speak of, but the shifting bundle was bulky and cumbersome.
“It’s the best we can do, Gymn. Let’s get Metta and get out of here.”
Metta continued to fly around the two guards and sing until Kale and Gymn had raced down the corridor away from the room.
“It is hopeless, little Allerion. Hopeless.”
I stand under Wulder’s authority.
Metta caught up with them. Kale wondered how long the effect of the purple dragon’s song would keep the guard immobile.
Better to hurry and not waste time wondering.
Kale could feel in which direction the masses of Risto’s minions were gathered. She figured she could avoid pockets of concentration. She needed to go higher as quickly as possible to reach a tunnel leading outside. Her plan was to avoid meeting anyone and move upward at all times.
At the first corner she met a parade of people moving down the hall as if they all had a common gathering place in mind. Few of these citizens of the underground stronghold were soldiers. The smattering of high races among the bisonbeck women and tradesmen puzzled Kale. She watched for a moment or two before turning back into the tunnel she’d already traveled. She’d have to find another, less crowded passageway.
“You see, o’rant girl, not all your people are so stubborn. Some embrace the benefits of joining me in my efforts to make the world a more pleasant place to live, an easier place, a place where individuals struggle less.”
I stand under Wulder’s authority.
I won’t listen to Risto. If those people are so thrilled to follow him, why aren’t they smiling? Those poor people looked as mesmerized as the guards did when Metta sang to them.
Granny Noon said never to mindspeak with one of the evil ones. They get a foothold in your mind that way. I won’t listen to him.
I stand under Wulder’s authority. I stand under Wulder’s authority.
After several false starts, dodging people, backtracking, and hiding, Kale found herself trudging down a stone hallway with branches sprouting off every few yards. Small niches in the wall where boulders had crumbled and fallen into the corridor offered places to hide. Kale was ready to jump into one at any moment. The feeling of a great populace of bisonbecks nearby made her edgy.
Gymn and Metta flew for the most part instead of riding on her shoulders. Grateful for their vigilance in spotting trouble, Kale also longed for them to be constantly near.
“I walk beside you, dear o’rant girl.” Risto’s voice came rich and warm into her thoughts. “I am not in the habit of sending my friends into dangerous situations alone. I find it reprehensible that you must face these hardships without proper training, without comrades. Who prevented you from going to The Hall? Who allowed your friends to be hurt and captured?”
Before Kale could repeat the words that closed off Risto’s intrusion, Metta and Gymn darted back around the corner. Kale scrambled into one of the stone pockets in the wall behind fallen boulders and flattened herself on the floor. She knew as long as she was still, the cape would cloak the egg from sight.
Kale held her breath as the bisonbeck soldiers stopped a few feet from where she hid. She could see something of their movements between two rocks. Two argued ve
hemently over whether or not the men had time to go to the alehouse before evening duty. Three men, waiting for the arguing two to come to a decision, leaned their massive shoulders against the walls and rested. One man came and sat on the boulder shielding Kale and her friends.
Kale felt Gymn trembling within his pocket-den. Her own heart pounded. She clenched her fists, willing herself to stay still.
“You see the peril you are subjected to. If you were under my command, these men would be no threat to you.”
Leave me alone!
“But I don’t want to leave you alone. I care about what happens to you. Ask yourself, Kale Allerion, who is beside you in this time of trouble? Paladin? Wulder? No. I am. I offer help.”
Again Risto’s tone of voice, smooth and coaxing, slipped on the name Allerion. A bitter edge poisoned the sweet, persuasive speech.
Kale gasped. She had been listening to him. I stand under Wulder’s authority.
Just as she felt the heavy presence of Risto leave her mind, a strong hand grasped her shoulder and jerked her out of hiding.
“The o’rant girl!” A coarse voice bellowed in triumph.
“Surely it is not the one Risto seeks.”
“You fool, who else would it be?”
“One of the peasants.”
“A drudge. Look at the burden it carries.”
“They are all at evening discourse. None would be brave enough to forgo the instruction.”
“Let’s see what it carries.”
Kale twisted in the bisonbeck’s hard hold and kicked out. He grunted but did not loosen his grip.
“Aargh!” cried another. “My eyes!”
Kale spotted an irate soldier wiping purple dye from his face. He pawed at his eyes. “I can’t see!”
“Minor dragons! It is the mighty Dragon Keeper. Hold fast, Deemer. It will be your head if it escapes.”
Kale squirmed against the iron grasp. Both Metta and Gymn flew around the bisonbecks’ heads, spitting into their faces. When a spew of green or purple liquid landed directly in a soldier’s eyes, he doubled over in pain, clawing at his face, trying to wipe away the thick spittle.
The last one to get sprayed was the one holding Kale. His hands jerked away from her shoulders. She ran. The little dragons zoomed beside her. Their wingtips brushed her hair and cheeks. The outraged cries of the blinded men echoed in the stone corridor.
The meech egg bounced against her back, reminding her that she could only duck into tunnels large enough for its unwieldy bulk.
She passed several small crawlways and turned into a dark burrow she hoped would be a tight squeeze for the soldiers should they recover enough to follow. The passageway narrowed. She ducked her head out from under the blue scarf strap and dragged the egg behind her. She came to a fork.
Which way?
“You are inside my stronghold, o’rant girl. Each way leads to me.”
I stand under Wulder’s authority.
The two dragons sat before her, peering down the small dingy tunnels.
“Do you know which way to go?”
Metta and Gymn looked at each other and exchanged a few words Kale couldn’t understand. But she understood their thoughts. Each would take a tunnel and explore. Kale was to rest.
Kale almost laughed when Metta’s motherly suggestion to eat something and take a little nap settled in her mind. But the idea of their leaving her, if only for a few minutes, struck her heart with terror.
What if Gymn runs into something scary and faints?
The little green dragon gave her a disgusted look.
Yes, I did notice you fought that last bunch of bisonbecks. She answered his prodding question, even though, until that moment, she hadn’t realized what an accomplishment the skirmish had been for her dragon friend. I’m proud of you.
Gymn nodded his satisfaction with her praise and zoomed into one of the tunnels. Metta disappeared into the other.
Eat? I guess I have to.
She took out a package from inside her cape and nibbled on tasty cheese sticks made by Lee Ark’s wife.
In a moment, Metta came back. The tunnel had ended in a pile of rubble. She sat in Kale’s lap and shared the cheese, turning her nose up at the bread. When they finished, the purple dragon curled up on Kale’s knee and hummed one of Dar’s “digestion” songs.
Kale squeezed her eyes shut against sudden tears.
“Most of my people are settled in their homes for the night. A hearth glowing with a warm fire. The smell of stew and fresh baked bread left over from dinner with their families. You don’t have to be alone.”
Kale sighed, weary from a long day filled with troubles. I stand under Wulder’s authority. She heard Risto’s mocking laugh and then welcomed the silence. Her chin dropped against her chest, and she dozed.
The dungeon! The dungeon! A hole. Leetu, Dar, Fenworth!
Kale awoke to Gymn’s frantic explanation of what he had found. Kale reached for the blue scarf and followed the excited dragon. After a long crawl, Kale stopped behind Metta and Gymn as they hovered next to a natural slit in the stone wall. She heard Wizard Fenworth’s scratchy voice.
“Uncomfortable things, quests. Not always predictable. A bit boring when nothing is going on. But then dungeons are always boring. Quests! What a bother. Lose things, find things. Meet the most unpleasant people. Present company excepted, of course.”
46
SOME THINGS CAN BE MOVED, SOME CAN’T
Kale peered through the little hole and almost whooped with joy.
Leetu sat with Librettowit, deep in a discussion. Lee Ark, Dar, and Brunstetter leaned against one wall, eyes shut, looking pale and unhealthy. Shimeran and Seezle were not in sight. Fenworth sat cross-legged in the center of their cell. One arm looked very treeish. But the other hand rubbed across his bald spot, keeping that side free of leaves and twigs. Without his hat, the old man looked very forlorn.
A wizard should not be without his hat. He looks so old.
As soon as the thought flitted across her mind, Gymn dove into the cape and came out, pulling the large pointed hat behind him. Kale grinned and nodded. She took the hat from him and stuffed it through the small hole. There she wiggled it back and forth, waiting for it to catch someone’s attention.
“See,” said Fenworth. “You lose things, you find things. Now there’s my hat, and it’s about time.”
Leetu jumped up and ran to snatch the hat out of Kale’s hand. The welcoming smile on her face transformed into a glare almost immediately.
“You’re supposed to be searching for the meech egg.”
“I’ve got it right here.”
“Then you’re supposed to be taking it out of the mountain.”
“I’ve been trying.” Kale glared right back at Leetu. “That’s not such an easy job. There are miles of tunnels down here, and most of them go in circles.”
“Here now, mustn’t quarrel.” Fenworth came up behind Leetu and reclaimed his hat. He smoothed the brim, straightened the pointy crown, and placed it on his head. “Ah, now that feels better.” He smiled broadly at Kale. “I assume you have your dragons with you.”
“Yes sir.”
“Let’s have Gymn, then, and if he doesn’t mind assisting me, we’ll patch up our comrades’ aches and woes. Metta could sing us some encouragement.”
Gymn wiggled through the opening and flew to the old wizard’s shoulder.
“I thought Gymn could only heal with me.” Kale frowned as both her dragons attached themselves to Fenworth.
Leetu put her fists on her hips and frowned. “Only you and any wizard in the service of Paladin.” Her frown deepened. “Actually, I think an evil wizard could also force Gymn to heal, but I also think it would hurt him.”
Kale started to tell Leetu that Risto had spoken to her, but she hesitated. Shame washed over her as though she had done something bad. Instead of confiding in her mentor, she turned back to the egg in its moonbeam cape sling and undid the knots so she could more ea
sily get to the hollows.
She called Leetu back to the hole. “Here is your bow. Where are Shimeran and Seezle?”
Leetu took her weapon, running an experienced hand over the wood, checking for damage. “They are being kept someplace else. It would have been too easy for them to escape this cell.”
Kale looked across the small room and noted the wall of bars. The kimens could have walked right between them. She passed Dar’s flute and harmonica into Leetu’s waiting hand. Some of the instruments were too big to fit through.
“I have your books and Librettowit’s, but they won’t fit either.”
“Why did you bother?”
“I don’t know. I thought you’d want them.”
“I seem to remember telling you—”
“I know, Leetu, I just picked them up. I don’t know why.”
Kale pushed Dar’s small sword and scabbard through the hole. She had difficulty fitting the hilt of Brunstetter’s sword through, and the sheath would not fit through even with Leetu pulling and Kale pushing. When she had passed as much of her friends’ belongings as she could to Leetu, she peered into the small room to see what progress Fenworth and Gymn had made.
Dar sat up and gave her a wave and a wink. Lee Ark and Brunstetter carefully inspected their returned weapons. Librettowit had his reading glasses on and was reading a small volume of poetry.
Fenworth walked over to the opening where Leetu stood on one side and Kale on the other.
“Food would be helpful, dear girl. And water.”
“Food?”
Leetu sighed. “You picked up books but not food.”
“I have some left from my provisions.” Kale handed over all that she had.
“You see, they don’t even appreciate what you’ve brought them.”
“I stand under Wulder’s authority.”
Both Fenworth and Leetu’s heads turned sharply as she uttered the phrase with anger.
“Risto?” asked Fenworth with an eyebrow raised.
Kale nodded and then realized he probably couldn’t see more than her nose and mouth from where he stood. “Yes,” she admitted.
“He’s been badgering you?”