Dragonvein (20 page)

Chapter Fourteen

F
or another two
days they wound their way gradually closer to the mountain. During this time Jonas found three more markers, and with each discovery Markus’ anxiety visibly increased. Ethan did his best to keep their conversation light, but it did little to lift his friend’s spirits.

He also took every opportunity he could to practice his one and only spell, and each time delighted in the sight of the tiny flame he was able to produce. Kat once again tried to teach him how to vanish, but he still couldn’t feel what she described as:
‘a hot coal in the pit of your stomach’
. Jonas suggested that, seeing as how her spell was based on instinct, he may not be able to learn it the same way. But it was of no great concern to Ethan at present. He was still in utter amazement at his newly found fire lighting ability.

On the morning of the third day Jonas started poring over the map yet again, a confused look on his face.

“What’s wrong?” Ethan asked.

He shook his head. “We should have found it by now. I’ve located all of the markers, and followed every one of the directions your mother described to me. The land should have changed from rocky ground to thick green grass.” He cast his arm around in a sweeping motion. “But look. Nothing but rocks and gravel.”

“We’ll find it,” Ethan assured him.

Jonas merely grunted and put away the map.

A few hours later, Markus suddenly stopped in his tracks to sniff the air. “There’s fresh water nearby,” he stated after a few seconds. He shook the near empty water skin hanging from his belt. “And not a moment too soon.”

Jonas’ expression instantly brightened. “If you’re right, then I think we’re there.”

Ethan looked up at the menacing grandeur of the mountain and began to share Markus’ anxiety. He paused to give it a long suspicious look. A finger poked him sharply in the ribs.

“Surely the great mage Ethan Dragonvein isn’t nervous?” teased Kat.

He forced a laugh. “I’m not nervous.”

“You really need to learn to lie better than that,” she said, wagging her finger playfully.

Markus chuckled. “Yes, he does. Come O mighty starter of camp fires. The dwarves await.”

Ethan flushed.

They wound their way around large boulders and thorny bushes until the ground began to slope gently downward. After a while they came to a narrow ravine that dropped off roughly six feet. At the bottom of this, a thin stream of clear water trickled gently along.

Markus was the first to climb down, followed by Ethan and Jonas. Kat hesitated, holding out her arms for Ethan to help her. He groaned inwardly at her obvious attempt at flirting, knowing full well that she could easily make it down by herself if she wanted to. Nonetheless, he did the gentlemanly thing.

Markus cautiously tasted the water. Satisfied, he gave a sharp nod to the others and began filling his water skin.

“This should lead us directly to the cavern,” Jonas said, now full of optimism.

The ground was smooth and even within the ravine, so they decided to stay down there until forced to do otherwise. At this lower level the air was cool and smelled clean, although it did also serve to make the lingering smell of sulfur on their clothes seem rather more pronounced.

They had only followed the path of the stream for a mile when Markus abruptly stopped. He crouched low and motioned for everyone else to do the same. The sound of voices could be heard from above, though Ethan couldn’t tell from which side they were coming.

Warily, Markus peered out, then sat quickly back down with his back pressed against the ravine wall. He pointed to the opposite side, holding up six fingers and silently mouthing: ‘
Imperial
soldiers’.

Ethan tried to control his rising heart rate. The path ahead disappeared into the distance, so if they were quiet, he hoped they should be able to get far enough away to emerge unseen.

Remaining crouched and with slow measured steps, the group crept forward, staying as close to the stream as they could where there was less gravel to crunch beneath their feet.

“Did you see General Hronso?” a deep, gruff voice drifted down.

“No,” answered another. “But I heard he’s damn near burned to cinders. How the hell he’s still alive I don’t know.”

“You moron,” chided the first voice. “Rakasa can’t die.”

“That’s not what I’ve heard. Word has it that if you chop off their heads they’ll die the same as anyone else. Anyway, whatever the truth, he’s liable to be around here any time now, so we better watch ourselves. If it’s true that someone’s managed to hurt him, he’ll be in a killin’ mood for sure.”

“He’s already killed the Grendil who was tracking those fugitives. Hacked him to bits, I hear.”

“Let’s just hope he ain’t got no business with us.”

“I don’t think the ones he’s after will be coming this way. Only thing around here is dwarves, and they ain’t the welcoming sort.”

“Yeah, well, they won’t bother us. And you best mind your tongue if you see the General. A word out of place and you’ll end up same as the Grendil did.”

Their conversation then turned to more personal matters. After a while the voices faded until they could no longer be heard at all. Markus took another cautious look up and sighed with relief on seeing that it was all clear.

“Where does this stream lead?” he asked Jonas.

“There should be a small pond at the end,” he replied. “And the cavern will be just beyond that.”

Markus nodded. “Then we should get out of the ravine now. We were lucky they didn’t look down here. If they had, we’d have been trapped.”

He and Ethan helped the other two up before climbing out themselves. The landscape was somewhat changed. Small patches of grass were scattered about, and a few thin pines had forced themselves up through the rocky soil. Even so, it was a far cry from what Jonas had described.

They reached the pond some twenty minutes later – a circular expanse of clear, icy cold water with a white sandy bottom that extended for several yards beyond the shore. On the far side of this they spotted a worn trail that disappeared behind a low ridge.

They were now almost right up against the base of the mountain. Ethan took a deep breath, hoping this meant they had finally arrived.

Glancing in all directions to be sure that no one was watching, Markus led them around the pond to the trail. As they crested the ridge, Jonas smiled broadly. “This is it!” he exclaimed. “This is the entrance to the cavern.”

It was fifty feet across and half as high. On either side stood a cluster of fruit trees, though these were all withered and twisted and bore no trace of fruit.

The air changed almost the moment they stepped inside, becoming thick and humid and filled with a sweet odor that reminded Ethan of spring flowers, only much stronger. So strong in fact, that it came close to being distinctly unpleasant. The light from the entrance seemed incapable of penetrating the gloom within for more than a few yards, so Markus ran out and returned with several small branches to use as torches. But even with these blazing it was only possible to see two or three paces ahead. It was as if the darkness was actually consuming the light.

The cavern floor was smooth and well worn, though with enough inconsistencies in it to show that it had not been fashioned by craftsmen.

With each step, Ethan felt his apprehension rising. The air was growing thicker, pressing in around him, threatening to choke off his breath.

“
This
is where my mother was trying to reach?” he asked incredulously.

Jonas gave no reply.

The sound of water dripping into hidden pools echoed in his ears, punctuating the ominous feel of his surroundings. After a hundred feet or so of progress, the ground suddenly sloped sharply downwards, nearly causing him to lose his footing.

It was immediately after regaining his balance that Ethan first spotted a ghostly green light piercing the darkness ahead. On drawing closer he could see that the glow was coming from thousands of tiny crystals covering the cave wall. In perfect harmony they pulsed like blood running through rock veins, making the mountain seem a living, breathing thing.

“Beautiful,” gasped Kat.

“What are they?” asked Ethan.

“I don’t know,” Jonas replied. He ran a finger over a section of the crystals. As he made contact their light brightened and became steady, then continued to pulse once he withdrew.

They moved on, each one wondering what else might lay ahead. That question was soon answered when the tunnel came to an abrupt end. Ethan could not believe it. He had expected to see something waiting for them – a door, or a clue what to do next – anything that could help. But there was nothing here. Only rock. It was the end of the line.

Markus examined the area several times before kicking the wall with frustration and spinning around. “All right, Jonas. What now?”

Jonas also made an inspection of their surroundings, but with no better results. “Maybe they have to come to us,” he said. “I just don’t know. Lady Illyrian never told me what was inside.”

“I suppose it beats getting killed by dwarves,” Markus said, tossing his pack onto the ground.

“Lord Dragonvein would not have sent his wife and son here for nothing,” Jonas insisted. “There
is
a way into the mountain. There has to be.”

Markus sniffed. “That was over five-hundred years ago, you old fool.” He turned to Ethan. “I told you we should have headed for the coast.”

“Never mind that. What do we do now?” he asked.

“Well, we can’t stay here,” Markus replied. “If they find us, there’s no way out. We should wait for nightfall, then head west. We can follow the shore north to Barkal or Dragon Bay.”

Taking a seat beside his pack, he cast an angry glance at Jonas. “You have until then to find us a way in.”

Jonas glared back, then, mumbling curses, resumed his inspection of the walls.

Kat plopped down beside Markus and retrieved a strip of jerky from her pack. “What do you think makes the crystals glow?”

He shrugged. “How should I know?”

“It’s probably magic,” she said. “I bet this whole place is filled with it. What do you think, Ethan?”

“Maybe.”

“I bet that’s why we can’t find a door. It’s been hidden by magic.”

“Or maybe it doesn’t exist, and we’ve been led by a fool on a fool’s errand,” snapped Markus.

“Jonas isn’t a fool,” Kat retorted. She looked at Ethan. “You don’t think that, do you?”

He spread his hands. “I don’t know what to think. But I have to agree with Markus. This looks like a dead end.”

Kat crinkled her nose and frowned. “You should have more faith. He’s gotten us this far.”

“
He’s
gotten us this far?” Markus scoffed. “If it wasn’t for him, we’d already be at the coast by now. Not cornered in a forgotten cave, looking for a door that doesn’t exist.”

“He’ll find it,” she shot back. “You’ll see.” She flashed Ethan a smile. “Then we’ll both be able to learn magic together.”

“What makes you think the dwarves can teach you magic?” Markus asked.

“I don’t know. But if they were friends with Ethan’s family, I bet they have books…or something like that.”

“Don’t count on it,” Markus told her. “I don’t know much about mages. But I do know that dwarves don’t use magic.”

“Then how do they make magic weapons?” she challenged.

“You ask too many questions,” he growled, then shifted so that his back was to her.

“They’ll know something,” she said in a half whisper, determined to have the last word.

Jonas continued to scour the walls for another two hours before finally giving up. He refused to make eye contact with Markus, and when Ethan attempted to speak with him he waved him away, muttering incoherently.

They waited until they were confident it must be well past sundown before heading back toward the entrance. Jonas looked sadly over his shoulder and shook his head.

“It’s all right,” Ethan consoled him. “It was a long time ago. I’m sure there used to be a way inside back then.”

Before Jonas could respond, the sudden clatter of steel and stomping of boots echoed loudly down the tunnel. Markus and Ethan both quickly drew their swords.

“I don’t suppose you can burn them like you did the Rakasa,” asked Markus.

Ethan desperately wished that he could. They could now see the light from a dozen torches as the enemy crested the top of the slope. But they did not advance any further.

“Dragonvein!” The voice of Hronso thundered out, sending fear into Ethan’s heart. “I know you’re down there.”

Ethan strained his eyes, but could not see him. “I’m here,” he called back.

“I underestimated you, mage,” he said. “I have not suffered injury in many centuries. That is a mistake I shall not make twice.”

“Leave my friends alone and I’ll come with you,” he offered.

Both Kat and Jonas grabbed his shoulders, pulling him back.

“You can’t,” said Jonas in a loud whisper. “Shinzan will kill you.”

Kat simply looked at him with pleading eyes.

Ethan jerked away. “It’s my choice.”

“I can hear you, you know,” Hronso called out. “Specter can live. But your servant has to come with me too. And I think I’ll need the young girl as well. Something tells me that she might be of interest to the Emperor.”

“You don’t need anyone but me. And if you try to take my friends, I’ll burn you again.” He hoped his bluff would at least buy them a short time to think of something.

“Perhaps you could,” Hronso responded. “Perhaps it was your own power and not the dragon’s last time. But then again, if you were able to, I think you would have done so already. I, on the other hand, can definitely burn you.”

Ethan saw a bright red light begin to flash sporadically, drowning out the torchlight. Markus snatched his collar and threw him toward the rear of the cavern.

“Run!” he shouted to the others.

Kat and Jonas obeyed instantly. But they had only made a few steps when a tremendous roar ripped through the air. Ethan glanced over his shoulder and saw a massive ball of flame streaking toward them.