Lament (Scars of the Sundering Book 2) (20 page)

A tower appeared on over the
horizon. Gisella spurred her horse. “Speaking of the forts—”

With the sun creeping toward the
western horizon, Pancras guessed Gisella’s purpose. An abandoned fort would not
be the worst place to seek shelter for the night. If it was garrisoned, it
would be even better.

* * *

Panic gripped Kale’s heart as he
fell. The last time he experienced this sensation, Bloodplume erupted and he
thought he was falling to his death. That was years ago, before he encountered
a chaos rift.

Wings! I have wings!
Kale
spread his wings, and the leathery flesh caught the air. Piercing pain tore
through his back and shoulders as he lurched into flight. He swooped up and
rolled. For a brief moment, he considered descending to investigate the bottom
of the crevasse and the fallen giant but decided it would be better to reunite
with Kali as soon as possible.

He pulled up and came about,
realizing he was already below the level of the lowest part of the undercity.
Kale flapped his wings, straining to ascend, but his muscles weren’t strong
enough. He resigned himself to gliding and maintaining altitude while he
searched for a place to land.
Maybe if I find a perch, I can climb up.

Kale spotted a dark area on one
of the walls. His eyes had not yet adjusted to the shadows of the chasm, but it
appeared to be an outcropping of some sort. As he glided closer, the ledge
seemed like a safe place to land.

Once he firmly planted his feet
on the rock, a quick glance revealed the shadow he noticed while flying was a
tunnel, which led from the ledge into the cliff. Kale folded his wings and
ducked inside. The passage was tight and black like a starless night, but his
eyes soon became accustomed to the absence of light.

The tops of his wings scraped on
the roof of the tunnel, and in several places, he was forced to crouch as he
followed its level path farther into the rock. Ahead, he spotted a clearing
where the tunnel widened. Once upon it, he noticed the junction was not of
nature, rather, the very rock had been scooped out to create the chamber.

The sigil placed on his chest by
Terrakaptis throbbed as he crossed the threshold. Though he could not see his
chest in the dark, he traced each line, each curve of the symbol. It was warm
to the touch, warmer even than his skin ran normally these days. The discomfort
faded after a few moments, his attention to it waning quickly as the
workmanship of the walls caught his eye.

The drak was not an expert in
underground construction, but it was obvious to his eyes some kind of claw
created the chamber. Fine striations in the texture of the walls resembled the
kind of gouges his claws made in dirt, but these were in solid rock. Sconces,
each containing a gem, lined the hollow, set into the wall high above his head.
He jumped to reach, but they were secured well enough that Kale could not
dislodge them.

In the center of the room’s floor
stood a raised circle of stone. Without better lighting, he couldn’t determine
whether or not the stone matched that of the surrounding floor, but it appeared
the stones of the circle were inlaid in the floor of the chamber. The center of
the circle was smooth, like the obsidian walls of Drak-Anor, or perhaps glass.
It was black, like a pool of perfectly still ink. Even though he could see in
the dark, he saw nothing in the center of the circle.
It’s like that hole I
jumped into under Ironkrag. I wonder where it goes?
He reached out to touch
it, but he decided to retract his hand.

Better not touch what I can’t
see.

Encircling the perimeter of the
stone circle were raised runes of the sort he and his sister had seen in
Ancient Drak writings. Kale recognized some of the words as magic but did not
understand them. Other words were plainer: gateway and moon. He recognized
sigils of Selene, goddess of magic and the moon, and one Terrakaptis taught
him: Rannos Dragonsire.

Kale whistled. “Deli should see
this.”

His eyes searched the room again.
Other than the stone circle in the floor, the sconces on the wall, dust, and
cobwebs, he saw nothing.
No, not nothing!

Kale raced over to an area of one
wall where the claw marks adjoined in an odd way. He ran his hand along the
marks and felt a seam. Following the pattern of unmatched marks with his eyes,
he discovered a door. The mechanism, elegant and complex, reminded him of the
puzzle box Terrakaptis gave him. He found the hidden catch and flipped it with
one of his claws. The door swung open with a loud clack, revealing a small
antechamber dominated by a spiral stone staircase. It led upward.

Bookshelves lined the walls of
the stairwell, each tome covered with a thick layer of dust. Kale wanted to
open a volume and explore memories of the ancient past entombed within but
didn’t want to risk destroying an important historical or arcane text. At least,
not before he shared this place with his sister.

“Pancras and Delilah would both
get lost in here. I’d never see them again!” He ran his finger along the spines
of the books. The bindings crackled under his touch. A cool breeze sent a
shiver down his spine, and he spun. Kale felt eyes on him, but he saw no one.

He quickened his pace.

Kale’s climb up the stairs became
a sprint as he felt an unseen hand brush the back of his neck. Around and
around and up and up he sped. Finally, at the top of the stairs, he found
another door. The locking mechanism was visible on the stairwell side, and he
easily deciphered how to open it. He passed through into a storage room filled
with broken furniture and dusty, moldy linens. Kale shut the door behind him,
taking note of its location as the door joined seamlessly with the wall,
leaving a smudge in the dusty floor as the only trace of its existence.

More stairs led up, such as those
leading up from a cellar. He found himself in what looked like an abandoned
home. Upon further exploration, the living quarters were actually the back
rooms of a store front. Long abandoned, the store gave no clues to its original
purpose. Dust, cobwebs, and the distant squeaking of rodents were its only
stock now.

A door allowed egress onto one of
the deep streets of the undercity. Kale followed his nose to fresh air, taking
note of the abandoned shop’s location. The street upon which he stepped led him
to one of the walkways in the chasm. He worked his way up, eager to reunite
with Kali.

He encountered her two-thirds of
the way back to the spot where the minotaur threw him.

“Kale!” Kali enveloped him in a
hug. They nuzzled each other for several minutes in relief.

At last, Kale broke their
embrace. “You won’t believe what I saw down there!”

* * *

Delilah was still trembling when
she left Grimstone Keep. Archmage Vilkan bade her to return to the Arcane
University while he engaged in a private discussion with Archduke Fyodar. She
understood he meant for her to board the carriage that brought them, but she
waved the driver off when he opened the door for her. The drak sorceress walked
through the keep’s gatehouse and onto the streets of Muncifer. While in the
shadows of the gatehouse, she pulled off the itchy beige robe and discarded it.

She made her way through the
twisting streets, trying to remember the route. In the end, she had to ask a
guard for directions. Once he put her on the right path, she doubled her pace
and didn’t slow until she arrived at The Granite Anvil.

The innkeeper looked up when she
walked in. “No rooms; we’re all full.”

“I’m looking for my brother. He
looks like me, but opposite colored with wings. Hangs around with a
rusty-colored drak.”

The innkeeper shook his head.
“Nah, haven’t seen them today. They go to The Stone Maiden a lot, you might
check there. Up the street. Can’t miss it.”

Delilah didn’t usually trust the
word of humans, but in this case, the innkeeper was correct. The Stone Maiden
was impossible to miss. A pristine marble statue stood between two entry doors;
over one shoulder, she stared down disapprovingly at whoever might choose to
enter the tavern. The din from within indicated the building was packed.

She pushed her way through the
crowd, scanning the seated customers for Kale or Kali. His face was obscured,
but her brother’s wings were unmistakable. Though part of his table was hidden
from view, she assumed Kali was with him. Delilah slinked toward them, using
the humans to shield her approach.

Kale yelped as Delilah grabbed
him from behind and hugged him against the chair. “That’s what you get for
sitting with your back to the door.”

“Deli!” Kale laughed and tried to
squirm around to look at his sister, but she held him too tightly. She released
him, moved to his side, and stood between him and Kali.

He pointed past her. “Back’s to
the door, but my front’s to the bar.” He waved at the barkeep and pointed at
his sister. Kali inclined her head to Delilah.

The drak sorceress pulled the
other drak into a hug. “I haven’t been fair to you. I’m sorry.”

Kali’s mouth moved in silence
before turning into a smile. “Thanks.”

“Deli! Did you see that freak
storm? Did you pass your trial?”

Delilah pulled over a chair to
sit alongside her brother. She waited until the barmaid brought her ale, gulped
it down, and wiped her lips. “Yes and no.”

Kali cocked her head. “Which?”

“I saw the storm. Oh, did I see
it! I was right there in front. Whoosh! Giants flying left and right when they
weren’t being fried by lightning.”

“Giants? Ha!” Kale slapped the
table. “I knew they weren’t falling out of the sky just because Adranus wanted
to kill us with them.”

“No, but they were marching
toward the west gate. The archmage blew them away with a magic storm,
whirlwinds, and lightning! It was…” Delilah searched for the right word to
describe both the exhilaration and terror. “Awesome.”

Kali leaned forward, taking her
mate’s hand. “Giants were marching on the city?”

Delilah flagged down the barmaid
and ordered another round of ale. She intended to drown her fears in a deluge
of alcohol. “It was only six of them. I don’t know what they hoped to
accomplished. They’re big and strong”—she shook her head—“but six against the
city gates and all the guards?”

“That doesn’t seem like an
invasion or even an attack.” Kali furrowed her brow and nodded at her mate.

“No, it doesn’t.” Delilah shook
her head. “Maybe if they were just attacking one of the villages between here
and the mountains, but not Muncifer. They’d have to be crazy to attack the city
with just six.”

“Sounds to me like the archmage
overreacted.” Kale scratched his chin. “Hey, how long are you here for? I have
to show you something!”

Delilah took the mug of ale the
barmaid brought and took a swig. “Not long. I need to buy some comfortable robes
and go back. I’m not supposed to be out here to begin with.”

“Oh, well, maybe I can take you
there on the way. I found this really, well, old place in the undercity. You
have to see it.”

Delilah took another swig of her
ale. “What kind of old place?” She didn’t want to play guessing games with her
brother. Part of her was tempted to stay with Kale and Kali, and if she didn’t
drown that part of her with booze soon, it might have its way with her.

“I don’t really know how to
describe it. It’s in an old, abandoned shop on the very lowest level of the
undercity.”

Delilah did not doubt Kale found
whatever it was he found fascinating, but a decrepit storefront did not appeal
to her in the least. Not now, not with all the other matters she was dealing
with at the Arcane University.

The ale made Delilah lightheaded.
The room tilted a bit when she stood up. “I can’t go look at it right now. I
have to get back. The archmage will probably be looking for me when he
returns.”

Kale stood up and grabbed his
sister’s arm. “Want us to come with you?”

“If you don’t have anything
better to do. I have to buy a new robe and then head straight back.”

“It’s no trouble, as long as Kale
can avoid taunting any more minotaurs.” Kali tossed a few coins for the drinks
onto the table.

Delilah decided she didn’t want
to hear about her brother taunting any minotaurs.
He should have learned his
lesson with the minotaurs in Almeria.

Together, the three draks left
The Stone Maiden and strode to the undercity. Throughout their trek, Delilah
overheard people discussing the freak storm. In the undercity, the railings to
the chasm were crowded with people gawking at the giant Kale told her about.
Delilah managed to sneak a quick enough peek. Her curiosity sated, she left the
dead-giant watching to people with nothing better to do with their time.

Kali led them to a clothier who
sold a variety of cloaks and robes. Merchants in the undercity catered to
either minotaurs or draks almost exclusively, and this particular merchant
specialized in drak clothing. Though most draks eschewed full-body clothing,
they set aside their pride during the bitter, raw Muncifer winters.
Fortunately, the merchant still had stock leftover from winter, and Delilah
spotted a beige robe with dark brown trim that suited her taste and fit her
well enough. It was made from lightweight wool and didn’t itch like the one
provided by the Arcane University did. On a whim, she rummaged for a similar
robe in a larger size and one of each size in grey similar to what novices
wore.